(Hawaii News Now) – By Rick Daysog. The House Finance Committee approved a controversial measure Tuesday that would collect hotel room and general excise taxes owed by vacation rental owners.
(Hawaii Public Radio) – By Beth-Ann Kozlovich. Hilton janitors say they were paid far less than union members, violating a union contract. Now they may get over 1 million in unpaid wages.
(Honolulu Civil Beat) – By Anita Hofschneider. Dozens of Hilton janitors are expecting to receive more than $1.1 million in unpaid wages from Hawaii Care and Cleaning, a contractor for the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Paola Rodelas, a spokeswoman for UNITE HERE Local 5, the hotel workers union, said the cleaning company and Hilton agreed to a settlement with 58 workers who claimed they were underpaid for seven years from 2007 to 2013.
(Law360) – By Joyce Hanson. The National Labor Relations Board on Monday affirmed an administrative law judge’s 2016 finding that Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel in Hawaii tried to thwart a union campaign illegally, while modifying the judge’s conclusions of law to conform to her unfair labor practice findings.
UNITE HERE! Local 5
Press Release
For Immediate Release
March 23, 2017
Media Contact: Paola Rodelas
Office: (808) 941-2141, ext. 270
Mobile: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org
The deal will improve healthcare, workload, and more
Honolulu (M
arch 23, 2017) – 105 workers at the Hilton Garden Inn, newly represented by UNITE HERE! Local 5, ratified their first union contract with a 97% vote. The new 5-year contract will guarantee wage increases, full family medical coverage, a pension, and more.
“Many of my coworkers with children struggle with paying for family medical coverage. My new union contract is going to give all of us full family medical. Living in Hawaii is not easy. We can put that savings toward other important things in our lives, like rent or childcare,” says Mason Kia, a guest service agent at the Hilton Garden Inn.
The contract also makes improvements to housekeeping workload; 79% of Hilton Garden Inn housekeepers surveyed experience daily body pain while at work and 67% take medications for their body pain. The new contract is also the first with language that allows housekeepers to drop a room from their daily quota if they are assigned to clean a room occupied by four or more guests.
“Cleaning a room where several guests stayed is hard work,” says Cecile Daniels, a Hilton Garden Inn housekeeper, “Usually it means there was a family staying there or there was a hotel party. It takes a lot longer to clean than normal. Our new union contract is going to make our workplace a lot safer for us.”
90% of Hilton Garden Inn workers voted to join Local 5 on January 16, 2017. Contract negotiations began in February, and the settlement was reached on March 15 after a 19-hour bargaining session.
“The fact that we ratified this union contract so quickly is a testament to the unity and solidarity that these workers displayed,” says Eric Gill, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 5, “When people come together, we win.”
Local 5 represents approximately 10,000 workers throughout Hawaii who work in the hospitality, health care and food service industries and is an affiliate of UNITE HERE, an international union that represents over 250,000 workers throughout the U.S. and Canada. For more information, visit www.unitehere5.org.
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(Hawaii Public Radio) – By Beth-Ann Kozslovich. International Women’s Day is a call to action for accelerating gender parity. On Oahu, members of labor union Local 5, the AiKea Movement, Women’s March Hawai’i, and the Hawaii State Teachers Association will march and rally in Waikiki. Gemma Weinstein is local organizer and women’s rights advocate.