BREAKING: Workers at Three High-end Downtown Hotels Vote in Favour of Strike Action

Amid Vancouver’s affordability crisis, over 1000 workers from Hyatt Regency, Westin Bayshore and Pinnacle Harbourfront could walk off the job this summer

 

Vancouver, BC – Downtown hospitality workers at the Hyatt Regency, Westin Bayshore and Pinnacle Harbourfront hotels have voted in favour of strike action, concerned about job security and the cost of living in Vancouver. The workers – including room attendants, front desk agents, kitchen staff, servers, and bellman represented by UNITE HERE Local 40 – stand resolute against increased precarity in the hotel sector. The strike votes concluded on Monday evening.

The exorbitant cost of living in Vancouver is making it harder for hospitality workers to live in the city to which they welcome tourists. In a recent survey of local hotel workers conducted by the union, 89% of hotel workers surveyed said they have had to give something up to afford their cost of living, such as family support or medical procedures. 46% of respondents have had to forgo fresh food to keep up with the rising cost of living in Metro Vancouver. Alongside substantial wage increases, the workers are asking for job security as they face the looming threat of hotel redevelopment to luxury housing.

Meanwhile, business for downtown hotels is booming this summer. Vancouver has the highest hotel occupancy and highest average daily room rates across major Canadian markets. In May, the average room rate in downtown Vancouver was $332 per night, while revenue per available room was up 22.5% over the same period last year, according to CBRE.

“Our hotels are packed this summer and are charging customers more than ever, but we aren’t getting our fair share. We want to earn enough to live in the city where we work. We struggled during the pandemic, while the hotel industry received billions in government help. Now our hotels are doing great, but we’re still left behind. Hospitality workers deserve a future in this city if Vancouver expects to have a vibrant tourism sector,” said Naden Abenes, a Room Attendant at Hyatt Regency for 15 years.

Picket lines could go up at the three hotels after the workers issue strike notice.

Downtown hotel workers including those from Hyatt, Westin and Pinnacle launched a major strike in 2019, winning a new standard in wages and working conditions, including groundbreaking safety and sexual harassment protections in the hospitality industry. UNITE HERE Local 40 also represents hospitality workers currently on strike at Sheraton Vancouver Airport and Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport in Richmond.

 

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

BREAKING: Hospitality Workers at Cedar Valley Lodge in Kitimat Authorize Strike

Job action may disrupt LNG Canada pipeline project

Kitimat, BC – Friday afternoon, Sodexo hospitality workers at Cedar Valley Lodge have voted 97% in favour of strike action. Workers are frustrated with little movement by management in bargaining to address cost of living concerns. Cedar Valley Lodge is the only accommodation facility in Kitimat large enough to house workers for the LNG Canada project. Usually accommodating up to 5,000 camp workers, a strike at the worksite could cause significant disruption to pipeline work.

Sodexo Cedar Valley Lodge hospitality workers are the lowest compensated workers at the LNG Canada construction site. The poly-party vote was conducted by UNITE HERE Local 40 and IBEW Local 993. The workers are asking for significant economic improvements that will allow them to keep up with the rising cost of living. The 450 workers – including housekeepers, kitchen staff, janitors, lounge servers, guest service agents, and maintenance – unionized with UNITE HERE Local 40 and IBEW on April 12.

BC Building Trades workers at the LNG Canada camp received a 12.5 % wage increase in 2022, and by the end of October 2023 will receive an additional 10% increase. Sodexo hospitality workers at Cedar Valley Lodge were not included in these increases. Some Lodge workers are making $5 per hour less than they earned in the same positions at the Kitimat Modernization Project 8 years ago.

“Cedar Valley Lodge workers are being treated unfairly. We deserve fair pay for the work we do – not to be the lowest paid people at the LNG Canada camp. With families to support, we need to be able to keep up with our bills. We will not be disrespected anymore, and we are ready to strike if we do not receive a fair proposal,” said Mike Lightheart, a First Cook who has worked at Cedar Valley Lodge for 3 years.

Mediation between the Union and the employer begins today at the BC Labour Board.

 

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

BREAKING: Sheraton Vancouver Airport Violates Labour Law Third Time

Employer continues to use unlawful replacement workers in an attempt to undermine strike

 

Vancouver, BC —The BC Labour Relations Board has declared that the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel violated the Labour Code by continuing to use impermissible replacement workers to perform the duties of striking UNITE HERE Local 40 members. The Vice Chair of the Labour Board issued a cease and desist order against hotel management for assigning impermissible replacement workers a greater proportion of concierge work than that previously shared between the bargaining unit and management.

This is the third law violation the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel has committed since workers walked off the job three weeks ago in their fight for wages that keep up with the escalating cost of living in Metro Vancouver. On June 30, the Labour Board ordered the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel, the Hilton Vancouver Airport, and the Vancouver Airport Marriott to stop contracting shuttle bus companies and paying taxi drivers to perform the work of striking employees.

On June 23, the Labour Board ordered the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel to cease and desist using any impermissible workers to perform the work of any bargaining unit employee that is on strike after the hotel was caught using six unlawful replacement workers. This included the hotel using replacement workers to backfill the work of a Front Desk Duty manager.

“It makes me angry that our managers seem to have no issue breaking laws during our strike and continue to use replacement workers. The refuse to treat us with respect and acknowledge they need their staff to keep the Sheraton Vancouver Airport running as guests expect. My coworkers and I want to get back to work – but we’re not working for less than living wages,” said Felisha Perry, banquet server.

The BC Federation of Labour has declared a public boycott of the three hotels, Sheraton Vancouver Airport, where workers are on strike, and the non-union Hilton Vancouver Airport and Vancouver Airport Marriott next door, which are operated by the same company. The workers continue to picket outside of the Sheraton Vancouver Airport daily from 7am to 7pm.

 

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

BREAKING: Company violated law by paying non-union drivers to transport guests from airport to Sheraton Vancouver Airport, Vancouver Airport Marriott, and Hilton Vancouver Airport during strike

Labour Board issues cease and desist order against Larco Hospitality affiliates

 

Vancouver, BC — The BC Labour Board has ordered the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel, the Hilton Vancouver Airport, and the Vancouver Airport Marriott to stop contracting shuttle bus companies and paying taxi drivers to perform the work of striking employees. The Board issued the ruling in favour of UNITE HERE Local 40, which represents the strikers.

Sheraton Airport workers, including shuttle bus drivers, have been on strike since June 14. The three hotels breached the labour code by using contracted shuttle bus companies, by directly paying cab drivers, and by reimbursing guests for taxi services between the airport and the hotels. Larco Hospitality operates the three hotels which are in the same complex. The Board ordered the employer to cease and desist from paying these non-union drivers to transport guests to and from the hotels.

The Vice Chair ruled that the three hotels are controlled by a common employer in this decision. The order was issued on June 30. This is the second time in as many weeks the employer has violated the labour code by using replacement workers.

The BC Federation of Labour has declared a public boycott of the three hotels, Sheraton Vancouver Airport, where workers are on strike, and the non-union Hilton Vancouver Airport and Vancouver Airport Marriott next door.

 

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

Media Advisory: NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh to Walk Richmond Picket Lines on Canada Day Weekend

Richmond, BC – TODAY NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh will visit Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport and Sheraton Vancouver Airport hotel picket lines in support of striking workers, represented by UNITE HERE Local 40. With Canada Day weekend kicking off the busy summer tourist season, hotels are booming again but hotel workers are falling behind in the economic recovery.

Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport (formerly Pacific Gateway): Workers have been on strike for over 2 years – the longest hotel strike in B.C. history. During the pandemic, the hotel terminated 143 long-term staff, mostly women and people of colour. While the hotel was being used as a federal quarantine facility, the owner’s mass terminations forced out 70% of hotel staff, while the remaining workers struck in May 2021. The owner, an affiliate of PHI Hotel Group, refuses to recall workers to their jobs as other area hotels have done.

Sheraton Vancouver Airport: Workers walked off the job on June 14 and are entering the third week of the strike. The hotel remained open during the pandemic with staff serving on the front lines. With Richmond hotels now booming, workers ask “Where’s our recovery?” as wages at the top convention hotel have not kept up with rising cost of living in Metro Vancouver. Last week, the BC Labour Board declared that the employer, Larco Hospitality, violated B.C.’s anti-scab law and used unlawful replacement workers.

The BC Federation of Labour (BCFED) has declared a public boycott of Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport and Sheraton Vancouver Airport. The official boycott extends to the Sheraton’s sister hotels next door – the Hilton Vancouver Airport and Marriott Vancouver Airport – which are operated by the same company.

 

WHO: MP Jagmeet Singh with striking workers, joined by Hermender Singh Kailley, Secretary-Treasurer of the BCFED and other community allies from across the lower mainland.

WHEN: TODAY, Friday, June 30

11:00 A.M. at Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport Hotel (3500 Cessna Drive, Richmond)

11:45 A.M. at Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel (7551 Westminster Hwy, Richmond)

VISUALS: MP Jagmeet Singh, hotel workers and community allies chanting, marching, and speaking with colourful banners, signs, and bullhorns. Striking hotel workers and UNITE HERE Local 40 representatives will be made available for interviews.

 

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