Local 5 joins 40+ cities in mobilizing service industry workers
UNITE HERE! Local 5
Media Advisory for October 19th, 2017
Media Contact:
Paola Rodelas
Mobile: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org
Local 5 joins 40+ cities in mobilizing service industry workers
Tens of Thousands of UNITE HERE Workers Across U.S. and Canada to Take Action, including Strikes, Marches and More for Justice at Work and Beyond
FOLLOW THE ACTION LIVE: #UNITEHERE
WHAT: All-day action with hundreds of UNITE HERE Local 5 members and community members, mobilizing to hold the most powerful corporations accountable.
WHERE: The Ilikai Hotel (1777 Ala Moana Blvd, Honolulu, HI 96815)
WHEN: Thursday, October 19, 2017 | 6:00a – 6:30p
WHO: Local 5 members in the hospitality, healthcare, and food service industries.
NOTE: Local 5 leaders and members available now through October 19th for interviews. Please reach out to media contact listed to arrange.
WHY: Service workers who work for billion-dollar industries serve our country in the literal sense every day, whether it’s greeting guests, making hotel beds, or delivering food to planes in 100° heat. When unionized with UNITE HERE, these workers also serve our country in a larger sense: by fighting for and winning fair union contracts that drive up wages for all workers in our community, union or not; by holding rich and powerful corporations accountable through pickets, boycotts, and strikes against exploitative employers; and by standing up to Trump and his political agenda to organize for racial and gender equity at work and beyond, for all immigrants, all races, and all religions.
On October 19th, in the largest year of organizing growth our union has ever had, we are joining together for justice in 40 cities in the U.S. and Canada. Our Honolulu action will be at the historic Ilikai Hotel, operated by Aqua-Aston Hospitality—the largest hotel operator in Hawai’i. Union workers at the Ilikai are working more for less. They are paid $3.51/hour less than the union hotel workers across the street, and they have to clean rooms that are much larger with full-sized kitchens. We want Aqua-Aston and other hotel corporations to know that Hawai’i wants the union standard, not the Aqua-Aston standard.
VISUALS: Halloween-themed actions. Hundreds in red shirts rallying with posters and banners featuring bold images of real service workers with the message “SERVING OUR COUNTRY.”
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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