Home » US Employment News » Southern California hotel workers strike again for higher wages

Southern California hotel workers strike again for higher wages

By Nithya Bose in US Employment News, posted July 21, 2023

Hundreds of hotel workers in Hollywood and Pasadena have started a third wave of strikes sweeping across Southern California this summer.

Staffers from 1 Hotel West Hollywood, the Andaz West Hollywood, the W Hollywood, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Pedro, Hilton Glendale, Hyatt Place Pasadena, and the Sky Terrace Restaurant, walked out yesterday (Thursday, July 20).

The main demands behind the strikes are higher wages, improved benefits, and better working conditions.

Unite Here Local 11, the union representing the hotel workers, says the workers' wages have failed to keep up with skyrocketing housing costs, forcing many into long commutes.

The current action follows a tense bargaining session at the Westin Bonaventure on Tuesday, July 18.

The Westin Bonaventure is the only hotel that has managed to avert a strike by reaching a tentative deal before the contract expiration date on June 30.

In the past few weeks, the union organized brief strikes in downtown Los Angeles during the Fourth of July holiday weekend, near Los Angeles International Airport, and at Disneyland.

During the Tuesday negotiations, a hotel industry group introduced a new contract proposal, which they claimed to be an improved wage offer.

However, the union rejected the proposal, leading to accusations of a lack of good-faith bargaining from both sides.

Unite Here Local 11 announced more strikes are planned at hotels across Los Angeles and Orange counties.

The strike has impacted the city's hospitality industry during what is referred to as the "hot labor summer."

Need Career Advice? Get employment skills advice at all levels of your career

Actors, screenwriters, and other workers have joined forces in solidarity with the hotel employees.

One such worker, Christopher Granlund, a food runner at the W in West Hollywood, shared his experience of increased rent and financial struggles.

Higher wages for hotel workers would mean having the freedom to pursue their passion for acting without worrying about making ends meet.

The union has raised concerns about fair employment practices, accusing certain hotels of failing to hire Black workers full-time while employing them as replacements during the strikes.

Follow us on YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.