Nearly 1,300 workers at four Boston hotels embarked on an “open-ended strike” this past week after giving hotels a deadline to reach a contract agreement with their union.
Yesterday, 685 workers at the Omni Parker House and Omni Boston Seaport hotels joined the almost 600 workers at the Hilton Boston Logan Airport and Hilton Boston Park Plaza who began an indefinite strike on Oct. 6, according to a UNITE HERE Local 26 press release. UNITE HERE Local 26 is a union representing hospitality workers across Massachusetts.
“While negotiations are ongoing, workers say there has been insufficient progress,” Local 26 Spokesperson Lynette Ng wrote in an Oct. 6 press release. “Key demands remain unmet, and the raises proposed by the hotel companies do not reflect their record profits and are not enough to offset cost-of-living increases.”
Kaba Kamara, who works in housekeeping at the Omni Boston Seaport, said the union’s demands include a raise for all workers, healthcare benefits, pensions, severance pay and an 18% raise for servers at the hotels. Kamara said these demands are “all important” to him and the union.
Local 26 announced in a press release on Oct. 1 that workers would give hotel companies a deadline of Oct. 4 to reach an agreement with the union. According to the press release, workers feel the union has given hotels “more than enough time to come to the bargaining table with a serious and meaningful economic package.”
With a 99% vote, Local 26 authorized strikes at 36 Boston hotels, which permitted workers to go on strike at any time after their previous contracts expired on Aug. 31.
Over the past month, more than 2,500 workers have gone on strike in three-day waves at several hotels across Boston. The strikes have garnered the attention of local government, with a hotel health and safety ordinance currently under deliberation by the Boston City Council.
The Hilton Boston Logan Airport and Hilton Boston Park Plaza hotels were two of the hotels whose workers went on strike during the first wave from Sept. 1 to Sept. 3. The Omni Parker House and Omni Boston Seaport saw workers strike during Local 26’s third wave from Sept. 19 to Sept. 21.
Unlike the previous three-day strikes, Local 26 intends to strike indefinitely until hotels reach an agreement.
José Reynoso, a Local 26 member, joined his fellow workers on the picket line outside the Hilton Boston Logan Airport on Saturday. Reynoso said the strike is an act of solidarity, even after the initial waves of strikes.
“I did my hours, I did my time and I’m back in here doing it all over again because it’s all about getting together and doing this together,” Reynoso said.
A Hilton spokesperson wrote in an email to The Daily Free Press that Local 26 represents the majority of Hilton’s hourly staff. They wrote that Hilton is proud of the wages and benefits it provides their workers, which according to Hilton are some of the highest among Boston hospitality workers.
Hilton’s compensation includes regular pay increases, fully subsidized health insurance for team members and their families, vacation, paid holidays and a pension fully paid for by the hotels, the Hilton spokesperson wrote. They wrote these wages and benefits were negotiated as part of Hilton’s “longstanding relationship” with Local 26.
Reynoso said workers’ hourly compensation is not enough to live given the cost of living in Boston.
“You go with $100 to the supermarket. You barely bring home a bag of groceries,” Reynoso said. “We’re out here doing all the work, and they pocket all the money, the big corporations. We just want a decent way of living.”
Reynoso said the hotels have not informed Local 26 workers of any action being taken.
The Hilton spokesperson wrote that Hilton respects the union’s right to strike “in a peaceful and lawful manner” but does not believe the strike is in the best interest of its workers
“While we disagree with many of the union’s current demands, we trust that we share the same goal which is to negotiate toward a fair and reasonable agreement that is beneficial to our valued team members and our hotels,” the Hilton spokesperson wrote.
José Valdez, a Local 26 worker and organizer who also picketed at the Hilton Boston Logan Airport on Saturday, said the union has maintained strong support for its members. The union provides four hours of pay per day for striking workers, or the equivalent of 20 hours of pay per week.
Reynoso said the union feels “very hopeful” about the outcome of the strike, and he thinks the hotels are hopeful workers will return to work soon. He said workers are ready to strike as long as necessary to reach a fair contract.
“If [hotels] want to take it the long way, we’re ready,” Reynoso said. “We could stay out here for a whole year if we have to until we win.”
“They wrote that Hilton is proud of the wages and benefits it provides their workers, which according to Hilton are some of the highest among Boston hospitality workers. ” is such a hollow statement when every competitor is also critically underpaying staff at all levels of service.