UNITE HERE Local 5 expects to settle labor contracts for more than 5,000 hotel workers, or approximately half the union’s membership, by the end of this week with average earnings that keep up with inflation and make up for some past losses — a significant gain that moves the union closer to its rallying cry, “One job should be enough.” Local 5 hotel workers at the Sheraton Maui, which employs over 300 union members, will vote on a new contract today, and on Thursday workers will vote at the Sheraton Kauai, which employs more than 200 unionized workers. The votes follow ratification Nov.
4 of a four-year contract between Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort and Local 5 workers, which ended a 40-day strike and put into place wage hikes that by contract’s end deliver $10-an-hour, across-the-board pay increases to workers. Cade Watanabe, Local 5 financial secretary-treasurer, said in a statement: “For 40 days, Hilton Hawaiian Village workers led all of Local 5. Their willingness to step up and strike set a historic new standard for hotel workers, and without their sacrifice we would not have been able to secure similar agreements with Kyo-ya & Marriott.
“These agreements achieve our major goals — wages that help us get ahead and not just get by, job security, and a commitment from our employers to address workload and staffing concerns that have a direct impact on our guests,” he said. “More importantly, hotel workers are proving the power we possess .
