A month after 1,200 hotel workers went on strike against Vancouver hotels, a deal has been reached: Union
Credit to Author: Susan Lazaruk| Date: Wed, 16 Oct 2019 18:14:49 +0000
A tentative deal offering “significant” wage hikes has been reached in the strike by 1,200 Vancouver hotel workers, most of whom have been off the job for about a month, according to their union.
The Unite Here Local 40 union, which negotiated the deal for the workers of the Hyatt Regency, Westin Bayshore, Pinnacle Harbourfront and Four Seasons hotels, said in a news release the tentative deal has secured “significant” wage hikes over four years, protections against sexual harassment and job security for room attendants and kitchen and restaurant workers, and maintained health insurance.
But union spokeswoman Sharan Pawa said by phone that she couldn’t discuss any details of the deal before the members have voted on whether or not to accept it, expected Wednesday.
“It’s all up to them now,” she said. “We are happy with the tentative agreement, but it is up to the members now to cast their vote.”
She couldn’t say how soon workers could return to their jobs at the Westin Bayshore, Hyatt Regency and Pinnacle Harbourfront, after the vote.
The Hotel Association of Vancouver, which represents the hotels, had offered a 15-per-cent pay raise over four years during talks, according to a statement by one of the hotels.
The association didn’t return a request for comment. Calls or messages left with the three hotels weren’t returned Tuesday.
Pawa said the protections requested by the union for its members included panic buttons, guest bans, whistleblower protection and special safety provisions.
The workers have been walking the picket line at the Westin, Hyatt and Pinnacle Harbourfront since Sept. 19. The Four Seasons is part of the same bargaining unit and its 200 workers will be covered by the same deal, even though those workers didn’t walk a picket line because of an unrelated ownership issue.
“Our strike has made the changes we need in the hotel industry,” Pinnacle room attendant supervisor Teresita Gonzales said in the union news release. “I’m very happy about the workload reductions for room attendants. The job security we’ve won is also great for our members (and) our families, and will keep our union strong.”
No deal has been reached yet with the Rosewood Hotel Georgia, where the strike began Sept. 22, and the picket line remains active, said Pawa. The employees of the three hotels with a tentative deal Tuesday joined the line outside the Hotel Georgia, she said.
The Hotel Georgia workers have been without a collective agreement since January 2019.
Being off the job for 27 days was worth it for Pinnacle Harbourfront room attendant Nym Calvez, who was also on the negotiating team.
“If our strike wasn’t as strong for these three weeks, we wouldn’t have got this great deal,” she said. “It is worth it because we’re changing the industry, especially for room attendants, and for everybody. It’s a win-win for everybody.”
Calvez said there is “still a lot a work to do” to improve wages and conditions for hotel workers.
CLICK HERE to report a typo.
Is there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com.