More than 1,500 hotel workers in San Francisco walked off the job Sunday in the latest wave of Unite Here member strikes, the hospitality union announced Sunday.
The affected San Francisco hotels are Grand Hyatt San Francisco Union Square, Hilton San Francisco Union Square and The Westin St. Francis.
There are now more than 2,200 hotel workers on strike in California, including workers at Hilton San Diego Bayfront, who walked off the job Sept. 1 and elected to strike until their contract demands are met.
Unite Here did not disclose whether there is a planned duration for the San Francisco strike. More than 1,200 workers in Boston recently went back to work after a limited-duration strike that lasted three days, the union shared.
Strikes are authorized and could still “begin at any time” in Baltimore; Honolulu and Kauai, Hawaii; Greenwich and New Haven, Connecticut; Oakland, Sacramento, San Francisco and San Jose, California; Providence, Rhode Island; and Seattle, per the union.
“I’m on strike because I have to work two jobs to support my family,” said Jin Ling Xie, a housekeeper at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square, in a statement. “I love my job, and going on strike wasn’t an easy decision, but it’s what I have to do for my family.”
Hilton San Francisco Union Square was in headlines last summer when owner Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. ceased making loan payments on the hotel. The downtown complex housing the Hilton property and the Parc 55 hotel has seen its value drop by $1 billion, according to the San Francisco Business Times. Hilton did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A Hyatt Hotels spokesperson told Hotel Dive that the company is “disappointed” the union has to strike and that Hyatt remains willing to bargain in good faith.
“We have offered competitive wages, health care and retirement benefits at the hotel that is on strike at this time, and colleague benefits and wages remain unchanged as we negotiate a new agreement,” the spokesperson said.
Marriott International, which owns the Westin brand, did not immediately respond to a Hotel Dive request for comment.
