Dive Brief:

• Thousands of hotel workers in Boston and Honolulu voted to authorize strikes this week, according to releases and posts on the social platform X from local chapters of hospitality union Unite Here.
• The cities follow smaller chapters in Providence, Rhode Island, and New Haven, Connecticut, that approved strikes earlier this week. Several other Unite Here locals have strike votes on the horizon, including Baltimore, Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose, California. 
• Unite Here said there is “momentum” for possible nationwide hotel strikes. Boston and Honolulu are the largest chapters voting this month to authorize strikes, with 5,000 workers each — though more chapters could announce plans to vote, the union said. 

Dive Insight:

Some 99% of workers who participated in the Boston vote, and 94% in Honolulu, approved a strike, according to Unite Here. 

When workers vote yes to strike authorization, a strike could be called any time after their contracts expire. Honolulu workers’ contracts expired in June, and they can now strike at any of the properties represented in their vote: Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort; Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort & Spa; Moana Surfrider – a Westin Resort Spa; The Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort; Sheraton Princess Kaiulani; Sheraton Waikiki; and Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa. 

“I am ready to strike for wages that allow me to take care of my family and proper staffing that allows me to take care of guests,” said Rachel Santos, hostess at the Moana Surfrider – a Westin Resort Spa, in a statement.

In Boston, contracts expire on Aug. 30. 

“Without the proper staffing, my job is getting harder and harder,” said Jianci Liang, a housekeeper at the Hilton Park Plaza in Boston, in a statement last week, noting that there are 20 fewer room attendants on the regular schedule now than there were pre-pandemic. The hotel did not respond to a Hotel Dive request for comment. 

Union hotel workers across the country are advocating for wages that better meet the heightened cost of living. Many of those workers were part of protests that took place earlier this year. 

More than 40,000 Unite Here workers have contracts up for renegotiation this year across the U.S. and Canada, the union said.