Press Release: City of Burnaby to Urge Bridge Studios Owner Larco to Provide a Fair Wage Settlement for Striking Hotel Workers

Council will urge studio owner, Larco, to offer fair settlement after eight-month strike at Sheraton Vancouver Airport hotel

 

Burnaby, BC — Burnaby City Council unanimously passed a motion on Monday for the City to support Sheraton Vancouver Airport hotel strikers and to write a letter to Bridge Studios’ owner Larco Investments, the owner of the hotel, urging them to provide a fair wage settlement to workers. This followed a delegation to Council representing the hundreds of workers at the Sheraton Vancouver Airport hotel – members of UNITE HERE Local 40 – now in their eighth month on strike. In addition to owning the Sheraton, Hilton, and Marriott Vancouver Airport hotels where picket lines are up, Larco also owns Bridge Studios in Burnaby.

 

The BC Labour Board deemed the Sheraton, Marriott, and Hilton Vancouver Airport hotels a common site and is permitting striking Sheraton workers to picket the perimeter of the hotels. The BC Federation of Labour, representing nearly fifty affiliated unions with approximately 500,000 members across the province, has declared a public boycott of the hotel complex. Last month Richmond City Council passed motions to not use the three hotels until a new collective agreement is reached with the striking workers. The workers, many who reside in Burnaby, are fighting for pay increases that will bring them to Metro Vancouver’s current living wage of $25.68 per hour.

 

“We thank Burnaby Council for their solidarity with us as we continue in our fight for living wages,” said Shaelyn Arnould, striking Sheraton Vancouver Airport hotel worker and Burnaby resident. “In 2021, the City of Burnaby supported our locked-out Hilton Metrotown members by not spending any city money at the hotel until a fair contract was reached. Their support was pivotal for hotel workers, and again Burnaby Council has shown they support the continuation of good, family-supporting hotel jobs.”

 

Larco owns the three Richmond hotels – making up the largest hotel complex in BC – as well as a series of movie studios under the banner Bridge Studios in Burnaby. Bridge Studios is a job creator in Burnaby with a major footprint in the city; Bridge Studios has properties on Boundary Way and Griffiths Drive, as well as an additional studio in development on Lake City Way.

 

“By sending a letter to Larco in support of the strikers, the City of Burnaby is demonstrating their commitment to fair wages for workers in Burnaby and across our province. Our strike is about earning enough to live, and we will continue in our fight until Larco treats hospitality workers with the respect we deserve,” said Shaelyn Arnould.

 

Media Contact: Sharan Pawa, 604-710-1693, sharan@unitehere40.com