Hotel workers in Chicago have been on strike for a week with no resolution imminent, and Marriott employees in San Francisco, Seattle, and other cities are threatening to walk off the job, as well.
The Chicago Tribune reports that workers are predicting a “long fight” as the city’s hotel strike enters its second week. The strike by the Unite Here Local 1 union involves employees at 26 hotels in downtown Chicago.
The fallout has included guest complaints about long check-in waits, uncleaned rooms, and noise from chanting strikers. Some meeting groups have cancelled events to avoid crossing picket lines. The strikers include housekeepers, doormen, cooks, bartenders, and other hotel workers.
Unite Here members have also voted to authorise strikes in San Francisco and Seattle, complaining that low wages force their members to work second jobs just to afford to live in these cities.
Workers also said that Marriott hasn’t done enough to protect them from customer harassment, Seattle Weekly and the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Marriott workers in Boston and Hawaii also have voted to authorise — but not yet implement — strikes.
