SAN DIEGO — Unionized workers at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel ratified a new four-year contract this week, ending a strike that lasted 38 days.
More than 700 workers began striking Sept. 1, seeking higher wages and manageable workloads, with their union saying many of its members have been forced to work multiple jobs in order to withstand major cost-of-living increases.
Unite Here Local 30, which represents the workers, said 94% voted Wednesday to approve the new contract, which includes "significant wage increases" for non-tipped and tipped workers, hikes to worker pensions and healthcare funding, and improvements to staffing and employee workloads.
Brigette Browning, Unite Here Local 30 president, said in a statement, "This is a great contract for the Hilton Bayfront workers and Local 30. We knew we could win if we continued to move forward. The bond that we have built here over the past 38 days is something we will remember forever. Hotel workers are the backbone of the hotel industry, and it's only right for them to receive the recognition they have earned. One job should be enough for every Local 30 member in San Diego."
The San Diego workers were among around 10,000 hotel workers nationwide who have gone on strike since Labor Day. Unite Here Local 30 said thousands of other Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott hotel workers are currently on strike in Boston, Honolulu and San Francisco.
During the local strike, the workers gained support from the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals, which moved its early October convention from the Bayfront hotel to a hotel in Los Angeles as a show of solidarity.
At 38 days, the Hilton strike was a record-setting work stoppage for San Diego hotel workers.
Yenifer Alonso, a housekeeper at Hilton Bayfront, said, "We all knew we were going to win if we just stayed strong to win a life-changing contract. This journey has been a wild experience for myself and many of my co-workers. We never thought we were going to be on strike for so long, but we knew we had to keep fighting in solidarity. I give thanks to all friends, allies, and Local 30 members from other properties for coming and supporting us in this movement for a contract that will allow us to have a better quality of life in our city."
Unite Here Local 30 also represents workers at the Hotel del Coronado, who voted last week to authorize a strike if a new contract cannot be agreed upon.
