About 200 workers at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers walked off the job for two hours this afternoon to protest layoffs and understaffing at the hotel.
According to hotel union Unite Here Local 1, in recent months, workers have filed grievances with hotel management regarding staffing cuts and a growing reliance on subcontracted services.
Tuesday, workers led a delegation to the general manager’s office at the hotel, but said management’s response to their concerns was “inadequate.”
The 1,209-room hotel, which has the largest ballroom in the Midwest, is managed by Starwood Hotels at 301 E. North Water St.
In Chicago, contracts for 6,000 hotel workers expired a year ago, and labor negotiations have been unsuccessful. Unionized hotel workers have staged protests, gotten arrested, authorized strikes and turned to religious leaders for support as talks continue.
Tuesday’s work stoppage is the second this year. More than 300 workers at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Chicago briefly walked off the job this May.
“Frustration has been growing for a long time, and people are angry that management is cutting staff and taking their work. There aren’t enough workers for all the work that needs to be done, and it needs to stop,” said Henry Tamarin, president of Unite Here Local 1.
Hotel management could not be reached for immediate comment.
This is what union’s get you. Laid off, or the company moves to China.
This is what union’s get you. Laid off, or the company moves to China. I have never commented on this story. Looks like the Trib. is being selective.
Hey Clarence, among other things Unions can get for workers are: respect, good benefits, and protection against companies that believes workers are as expendables as cleanex. And BTW service such hospitality cannot be outsource to China or anywhere else that slavery is the norm. Peace.
@Clarence — Are you saying that non-union shops do not lay people off or move overseas?