A long-simmering feud between Hyatt Hotels Corp., Chicago, and labor union UNITE HERE is about to result in a planned boycott that includes prominent U.S. unions and advocacy groups.
The AFL-CIO, NFL Players Association, National Association of Women, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and other organizations are set to announce on Monday a global boycott, endorsed by the international labor union federation IUF, of Hyatt Hotels Corp. hotels. The announcement will be formally made a press conference to be held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on Monday.
UNITE HERE has organized numerous demonstrations against Hyatt over the past year over labor conditions. Hyatt Hotels Corp. asserts that it provides “industry-leading wage and benefits packages” and that the “average tenure of Hyatt housekeepers in the US is more than 12 years.”
“The UNITE HERE campaign is not about creating a better workplace at our hotels, but is an attempt to boost union membership by organizing associates at non-union Hyatt hotels through a non-democratic and intimidating process. To maintain the campaign, UNITE HERE leaders have refused to allow their members in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Waikiki vote on proposals containing the same wage and benefits packages the union accepted at Hilton and Starwood,” said Doug Patrick, Hyatt’s senior vice president, human resources. “As a result, our associates in these cities have gone without the pay raises and benefits increases they deserve for nearly three years.”