Job action possible after Vancouver hotel workers deliver strike vote
Credit to Author: Susan Lazaruk| Date: Sun, 25 Aug 2019 02:04:32 +0000
Three large luxury hotels in downtown Vancouver are facing the “real possibility” of strike action after employees voted overwhelmingly in favour to back their union in contract negotiations for better wages and working conditions.
The Hyatt Regency, the Westin Bayshore and the Pinnacle Harbourfront Vancouver could soon be behind picket lines during the busiest tourism month of the year after its employees gave their union, Unite Here, Local 40, an 89 per cent strike mandate, union spokeswoman Sharan Pawa said Saturday.
“Our chief negotiator, Robert Demand, said unless the companies get serous about negotiations, a strike is a real possibility,” she said, adding that talks have been scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
The Pinnacle Harbourfront wrote in an emailed statement, signed by general manager Jonas Melin, that the hotel “is committed to the ongoing collective bargaining process. We are very hopeful for a new collective agreement.”
The company wouldn’t answer further questions. Calls for comment to the Bayshore and Hyatt weren’t returned Saturday.
The employees of those three hotels, plus those who work for the Hotel Georgia and Four Seasons Hotel — 1,500 workers in total, all represented by Local 40 — have been without contracts for up to a year, said Pawa.
(Meanwhile, in separate negotiations, the union has also issued a strike notice to the Hotel Georgia, which responded last week with a notice to issue a lockout. Mediation is scheduled during the coming week in that bargaining process. The union is also re-negotiating a contract for the Four Seasons Hotel employees, but those members haven’t voted to strike since the Four Seasons is scheduled to close in January because of a dispute with its landlord.)
Potential strike by Vancouver hotel workers may affect the tourism industry in the busiest month.
On behalf of all 1,500 employees, Pawa said the union is demanding the companies improve the workers’ wages and working conditions to improve safety of the employees.
The union said starting rates for hotel jobs range from the high teens to low-$20 per hour range, but Pawa wouldn’t disclose the raises being sought because they are still in negotiations, she said.
“The real issue here is full-time hours,” she said. “Companies want full-time availability, on-call as needed, instead of offering full-time work.” That makes it difficult for workers to provide for their families or take a second job, Pawa said.
The union is also looking for “workplace protections” for its members whom Pawa said have suffered “serious injuries and strains” from heavy workloads on the job.
Plus, the union is asking for all female employees to be equipped with “panic buttons” they could use to call for help if they feel threatened or vulnerable while working alone.
She said the Hotel Georgia has said it will adopt panic buttons by 2021, which Pawa called “inadequate.”
(The dispute with the Hotel Georgia includes a human rights tribunal complaint against the company by female employees who said they have been subjected to sexual assault and harassment by hotel guests.)
There is the potential for a strike by Vancouver hotel workers.
Pawa said the union is asking for a “living wage” for its members, particularly in light of what she said were record profits for the hotels.
The Bayshore, which has almost 500 rooms, on its website advertised rooms for this weekend at $459 to $539 a night. The Pinnacle, with more than 400 rooms, listed rates online for next weekend at between $356 and $431. And the Hyatt’s rooms were listed online starting at $366 a night.
Minimum wage in B.C. is $13.85 an hour ($12.70 an hour for liquor servers).
There are 23,000 hotel rooms in Metro Vancouver, with 12,000 of them in downtown Vancouver, according to Tourism Vancouver. Last year, there were more than 10 million overnight visitors to Metro Vancouver, according to Tourism Vancouver. The number of visitors peaked at 1.5 million in August.
The Vancouver Convention Centre is booked for conventions every weekend throughout September and October, including the Interior Design Show and the world congress of the International Society of Hematology.
There was a wildcat strike in 2000 at downtown Vancouver hotels, said Pawa.
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