Hotel workers beat the drum for healthcare as others return to work

On the evening of Sept. 21, hundreds rallied in front of the Hilton Hotel at 720 S. Michigan Ave. to show solidarity with the Chicago hotel workers who have been on strike for over two weeks. Among the public officials who made appearances to show their support for the strikers were U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Illinois treasurer Mike Frerichs, Illinois Rep. Theresa Mah and others.

The strike began Sept. 7 when approximately 6,000 employees at 26 hotels throughout the city initiated a work stoppage. The contracts for most of these workers expired on Aug. 31, which is not uncommon. Hotel occupancy is significantly lower during the winter, which makes downsizing a necessity for hotels.

Before the strike, however, employees at these hotels could be classified as full- time workers but still lose benefits during the winter if they got laid off, leaving them without year-round health care. This discrepancy has been the focal point of the strike.

Chris Roberts, a professor and the director of graduate programs at the School of Hospitality Leadership, said that the college is “remaining neutral on this matter and not commenting.”

DePaul’s own School of Hospitality Leadership features a Hospitality Advisory Council, whose members represent organizations both international and from the Chicago hospitality community. The school encompasses the J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Center for Student Development and Engagement, a center formed after a donation from the founders of the Marriott hotel chain.

Jimmy Tyrone Lewis, who has been an employee at the Palmer House Hilton for 33 years, was among the strikers at the Hilton on Michigan Ave. “A lot of the hotels would hire people on, but wouldn’t specify that the position was really only temporary,” said Lewis. “So when the off-season came around—the winter months—they’d lay off a lot of employees and leave them without health care. That was the biggest thing that inspired the strike. Another thing was pensions, higher wages, increased job security.”

Many walk-outs and demonstrations have taken place in previous years, but Lewis said that “we haven’t seen this big of a strike from hotel workers in probably a hundred years.”

Most of the hotels where workers have gone on strike also function as convention centers throughout the year for a variety of organizations. The Law School Admission Council (LSAC) was scheduled to hold a forum at the Palmer House Hilton on Sept. 29, but the strike resulted in the LSAC deciding to move the event’s location.

In an email to those planning to attend the forum, the LSAC wrote, “The forum location is moving to the Marriott Marquis Chicago. The move is necessary due to a strike by union workers involving nearly 30 Chicago hotels, including the Palmer House Hilton.”

The email continued, “The Marriott Marquis is a Fair Hotel, and is not affected by the strike. LSAC is committed to promoting fairness and equity in all aspects of our work and we did not want you to be placed in the difficult position of having to decide whether or not to cross a picket line in order to pursue a career in law and justice.”

Unite Here Local 1, the union which represents the striking workers, has been facilitating contract negotiations with the hotels where employees have gone strike. In addition to Local 1’s efforts to organize and mobilize the affected hotel workers, non-union groups like the International Socialist Organization (ISO) have also provided vital support to the strikers. DePaul junior Quinn Mulroy, a member of DePaul’s ISO chapter, was another one of the strikers at the Hilton on Michigan.

“We’ve just been talking to the striking workers and trying to work with them to organize solidarity campaigns, like Facebook events where they invite people from the public to come,” said Mulroy. “We’ve also worked with them to set up a GoFundMe and a strike fund … But for the most part, our involvement is just showing up to support and trying to get other people to come support them.”

The efforts of Local 1 and ISO to draw public support seem to have proven effective. According to Mulroy, the number of strikers has only increased since the strike began two weeks ago. The demonstration in front of the Hilton on Michigan was one of the largest thus far.

“The Seattle Seahawks were supposed to stay at one of the hotels and they changed hotels because they didn’t want to cross the line,” said Mulroy. “And, of course, a bunch of different unions around the city are all refusing to work with the hotels … UPS are refusing to deliver to the hotels. When the Wi-Fi broke down in one of the hotels, AT&T workers refused to come fix it … That’s the kind of solidarity that you feel when you have such a militant and public strike like this.”

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who recently announced her decision to run for mayor of Chicago in 2019, made an appearance at the strike as well. She addressed the crowd with a megaphone later in the evening.

“I’m proud of all of you here today fighting for health care,” said Preckwinkle. “It’s one of the most important benefits, most important rights, that all

of us should have. And the hospitality industry is cyclical and seasonal, and the idea that the owners of our hotels are not prepared to support their workers with health care when they lay them off is disgraceful.”

Also in attendance was the controversial Rev. Jesse Jackson, who followed Preckwinkle’s speech with a brief one of his own.

“We fight today for decent wages and health care,” Jackson said to the crowd. “We all deserve health care … Brown, black and white, we all precious in God’s sight. Everybody deserves health care … Keep holding the line. Don’t surrender.”

As of Sept. 22, nine of the 26 hotels with labor disputes have reached contract agreements with their employees, leaving 17 hotels with workers still on strike.

Photos by Xavier Ortega | The DePaulia