Why housekeepers at the Hilton hotel need a union
2017Ernie Gotta 2017-12Read it in the scan (PDF at ETOL), page 4 →
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STAMFORD, Conn.—Before Hilton hotel workers in Stamford voted for a union, they faced a serious at tempt by the bosses to bust their campaign for union recognition. Following the practice of past union drives, the bosses made use of law firms that special ize in union busting.
Why pay millions of dollars to prevent a union from forming instead of giving their workers the respect they deserve? Right now, hotels in Stamford, Conn., the second largest market in New England, are bring ing in big profits for the owners. They can afford to pay their workers a living wage, but they’re too greedy to concede a few bucks.
Housekeepers, consisting mostly of immigrant workers, represent a major portion of the hotel’s la bor force. They work their fingers to the bone and have little to show for it. Housekeepers are some of the most exploited sections of the hospitality industry. owners act like scam artists, paying out big dividends to their investors and pocketing profits while paying poverty wages, roughly $22,000 a year, to their house keepers.
Yrvanne, another Hilton housekeeper, said, “I need the union because conditions are worse than you can imagine. There’s no respect, no good benefits, and af ter 30 years of hard work I’m still not making enough. The health care is a killer, and the bosses are always adding more work.”
What do union housekeepers make? In union ho tels like the Hilton in Hartford, Conn.—just 90 min utes from Stamford—the starting wage is over $17 per hour, and that includes quality affordable health care. The bosses know that with the workers united and fighting for a good contract they’ll take a hit in the profit margin. They can afford it but spare no expense to maintain their greedy drive for profits. n