Dive Brief:
- Sen. Bernie Sanders joined union hotel workers for a rally outside Hotel Figueroa in Los Angeles, where employees have been in a labor dispute for eight months, according to a release obtained by Hotel Dive.
- A laid-off cook at the hotel recently filed a class-action lawsuit against the hotel’s owner, private equity firm BentallGreenOak, alleging a violation of the Los Angeles Hotel Worker Retention Ordinance.
- Though union workers have seen wins elsewhere in the region — 34 hotels ratified contracts with the union last month — labor disputes continue. Unite Here and Sen. Sanders claim private equity-owned properties are to blame for the protracted battle.
Dive Insight:
Referencing the contracts won elsewhere in Southern California, Sen. Sanders said at the rally, “If 34 hotels can sign a contract, Figueroa and the other hotels can do the same.”
Earlier this month, laid-off cook Maria Ibarra filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that Hotel Figueroa violated Los Angeles’ Hotel Worker Retention Ordinance when its food and beverage operator abruptly terminated its employees six days after they filed to organize a union, according to the LA Times.
Soon after, the lawsuit claims, BentallGreenOak contracted with a new company to operate Hotel Figueroa’s restaurants — but with new staff.
The lawsuit is the latest in a particularly thorny labor dispute. Workers at Hotel Figueroa previously claimed that someone fired ball pellets from an air rifle at them while they picketed outside the hotel in January, according to the LA Times.
Unite Here claimed that private equity firm-owned hotels, in particular, have been obstacles to contract settlements. Of the hotels that have yet to reach agreements with workers in the multi-property strike that began in July, 78% are owned or operated by private equity firms, Unite Here said.
At the rally, Sanders pointed to the salary of Blackstone’s CEO, saying he earned more in one year than all the striking workers combined. Blackstone owns several hotels that have yet to reach contract agreements, Unite Here said.
Union workers have also led a boycott against hotels managed by Aimbridge Hospitality — which are owned by private equity firm Advent International — that have yet to settle contracts.
Hotel Figueroa is part of Hyatt’s Unbound Collection. Neither Hyatt nor BentallGreenOak could be reached for comment.
