Approximately 2,000 union workers at Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu walked off the job Tuesday, according to hospitality union Unite Here.
More than 4,000 hotel workers are now on strike nationwide, as Hawaii strikers join others in San Francisco and San Diego, the union said.
Hilton Hawaiian Village is the largest hotel in Hawaii, according to Unite Here, with some 3,300 rooms on 22 acres.
Approximately 1,500 hotel workers walked out in San Francisco at Grand Hyatt San Francisco Union Square, Hilton San Francisco Union Square and The Westin St. Francis on Sept. 22, and workers at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront walked out Sept. 1.
Unlike previous waves of this year’s hotel strikes, which had limited durations, all workers on strike now say they plan to continue striking until their contract demands are met. Workers are asking for wages that better meet the rising cost of living and safer working conditions.
“We’re committed to bargaining and settling a contract, but since coming back to work after our three-day limited duration strike and meeting with our employers for another bargaining session, they just don’t get it,” Aileen Bautista, housekeeper at Hilton Hawaiian Village, said in a statement.
Hilton said several hotels are in negotiations for new collective bargaining agreements with Unite Here. “We remain committed to negotiating in good faith to reach fair and reasonable agreements that are beneficial to both our valued Team Members and to our hotels,” a Hilton spokesperson told Hotel Dive.
Workers in Boston held two waves of three-day strikes earlier this month. Elsewhere, hotel employees have walked off the job in New Haven and Greenwich, Connecticut; Baltimore; Kauai, Hawaii; San Jose, California; and Seattle.
The union stated that more strikes "could begin soon.”
