Skift Take
The labor movement has organized most of its strikes this year as localized, short-duration walkouts.
Key Points
- Over 5,000 hotel workers in the U.S. are on strike, with recent walkouts in Boston and Seattle.
- Strikes are affecting operations at major hotel chains, causing service disruptions for guests.
- The hospitality workers' union, Unite Here, has authorized potential walkouts for 40,000 workers.
Summary
Hotel workers in Boston and Seattle have joined ongoing strikes, escalating labor disputes in the U.S. travel sector. These strikes, involving over 5,000 workers, are causing disruptions at major hotel chains, affecting services for travelers. The hospitality workers' union, Unite Here, is pushing for better pay, reduced workloads, and increased staffing, with potential walkouts authorized for 40,000 workers across North America before year's end.
About 5,060 hotel workers are now on strike across the U.S., with walkouts in Boston and Seattle in the past two days escalating labor disputes in the travel sector.
The strikes are disrupting operations at major hotel chains such as Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, and Omni, affecting some travelers while putting pressure on owners and operators.
This weekend, more than 600 workers in Boston, including staff at the city’s largest hotel — Omni Boston Seaport, with over 1,000 rooms — joined strikes. On Monday, about 300 workers in Seattle walked off their hotel jobs.
Strikes at hotels in Honolulu and San Francisco have been ongoing since September.
Unite Here, the hospitality workers’ union, said that about 40,000 hotel workers in 22 North American markets have authorized potential walkouts before the end of the year. Workers call for a mix of greater pay, workload reductions, and staffing increases.
A Strategy of Staggered Strikes
Union organizers have often used small-scale strikes this year as an intermediate step to raise pressure during negotiations.
Exhibit A: Since April, workers at the Omni Parker House and the Omni Boston Seaport hotels have been negotiating over new contracts. In mid-September, workers walked off the job for three days. They went on strike on Monday, planning not to return to work until they reached a deal.
In contrast, strikes by 374 workers at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport and Hilton Seattle Airport & Conference Center are planned to last only until October 19.
Some guests at affected locations have noted on social media that they’ve experienced service disruptions, such as unavailable daily housekeeping and closed swimming pools and other amenities.
Accommodations Sector Stock Index Performance Year-to-Date
What am I looking at? The performance of hotels and short-term rental sector stocks within the ST200. The index includes companies publicly traded across global markets, including international and regional hotel brands, hotel REITs, hotel management companies, alternative accommodations, and timeshares.
The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more hotels and short-term rental financial sector performance.
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Tags: boston, future of lodging, labor, labor strike, omni hotels, seattle, strikes, unions
Photo credit: Strikers at the Omni Parker House hotel in Boston on October 14, 2024. Unite Here Local 26