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Hilton Hawaiian Village and Hawaii Care & Cleaning (HCC) workers ratify union contracts

Press Release for July 10, 2019

Media Contacts:
Paola Rodelas
Cell Phone: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org

Bryant de Venecia
Cell Phone: (808) 546-0024
bdevenecia@5.unitehere.org

Hilton Hawaiian Village and Hawaii Care & Cleaning (HCC) workers ratify union contracts

These agreements brings workers closer to making one job enough to live in Hawaii

(Honolulu) – UNITE HERE Local 5 members who work at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and Hawaii Care & Cleaning (HCC), a subcontracted cleaning company that does housekeeping work at the hotel, voted overwhelmingly to ratify union contracts that cover nearly 2,000 workers.

The negotiating committees, which are made up of workers from various departments, worked with the company to reach terms that include wage and benefits increases, job preservation, worker involvement in the implementation of new technology and automation, and more. These are four-year agreement that expire on June 30, 2022.

The Hilton agreement is modeled after the contract agreement that was reached on November 27 with Kyo-ya, which own five Marriott-operated in hotels in Waikiki and Maui. Beginning in October 18, nearly 2,700 workers at the five hotels went on strike for 51 days with the demand that one job should be enough to live in Hawaii. It was part of a nationwide strike, involving over 7,700 Marriott workers from 23 hotels in eight cities.

In addition, the Hilton agreement includes historic provisions that benefit timeshare workers, setting a standard for timeshare workers across Hawaii’s tourism industry. Kyo-ya’s properties in Hawaii do not have timeshares, so these terms were not part of the Marriott agreement.

HCC workers also received significant wage and benefits increases and will have the option to be hired in-house by Hilton before the end of the contract. The union has been working to eliminate subcontracted housekeeping work in the hotel for 20 years. “This contract will really help my family. My fiance and I both work at HCC. Because of this new contract, my family will have $1,400 more per month starting in January because of the free medical coverage that HCC workers will finally get. Having a job that is more secure with paid medical and a retirement is a dream come true,” says Cesilee Linares, who works at HCC.

Because of the solidarity and support of the Hilton and HCC workers, 80 workers at the DoubleTree Hilton Alana Waikiki became members of Local 5 on May 25. This continues a trend of growth for Local 5 and union membership in Hawaii. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Hawaii’s union representation increased to 23.1% in 2018.

“We worked together to push the cart up the hill to win a good contract that brings us closer to making one job enough to live in Hawaii. It was not only the Hilton workers who worked together, but workers from HCC, DoubleTree, and the Kyo-ya members who went on strike so that all of our hotels can benefit from their fight,” says Lawrene Kanoa, a front desk worker at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Collective bargaining agreements at 20 Local 5 hotels expired in 2018. Eight Marriott-operated hotels have already settled, making the Hilton Hawaiian Village and HCC the 9th and 10th contracts settled. 10 hotel contracts have been settled, covering over 5,000 hotel workers. 10 more hotel contracts remain open and the “One Job Should Be Enough” campaign continues—for Local 5 members and the broader community.

Local 5 represents approximately 11,000 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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Workers at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, the largest Hilton in the world, announce strike vote at International Women’s Day Rally

Press Release for March 8, 2019

Media Contacts:
Paola Rodelas
Cell Phone: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org

Bryant de Venecia
Cell Phone: (808) 546-0024
bdevenecia@5.unitehere.org

Workers at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, the largest Hilton in the world, announce strike vote at International Women’s Day Rally

Nearly 2,000 Local 5 members will be taking a strike vote on March 21 to send a clear, unified message that One Job Should Be Enough to live in Hawaii

(Honolulu) – UNITE HERE Local 5 members at Hilton Hawaiian Village rallied today at the world’s largest Hilton to demand a new contract for the hotel’s 2,000 workers. They announced that they will be taking a strike vote on March 21 to send a clear, unified message that One Job Should Be Enough to live in Hawaii.

Hundreds of workers and community members gathered on International Women’s Day to show strength and solidarity as members approach bargaining with Hilton. The rally also included non-union hotel workers from the DoubleTree Hilton Alana Waikiki who recently called on Hilton for a fair process to decide whether to unionize. The DoubleTree Alana is operated by the Hilton and owned by Malaysia-based Keck Seng. Every year, Local 5 organizes an action for International Women’s Day to honor and celebrate women, who comprise the majority of workers in Hawaii’s largest industry.

Local 5 represents over 1,800 workers at the Hilton Hawaiian Village – the largest hotel in Hawaii and the largest Hilton hotel in the world – as well as nearly 200 workers at Hawaii Care & Cleaning (HCC), who are subcontracted to do housekeeping work at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. Their union contracts expired in July 2018. Contract negotiations with Hilton will commence on March 22 and 23.

Local 5 members who work at Hilton are demanding a new contract that will put the workers on par with 2,700 workers from the five Marriott-operated hotels who went on a 51-day strike in 2018 to demand that one job should be enough to live in Hawaii.

On top of wage and benefits increase and workplace safety, Local 5 members at Hilton demand that the company address the issue of subcontracting and automation. “Subcontracting is rapidly encroaching our workplace and it needs to be eliminated. When you bring in more people from the outside, what is going to happen to my job? Also, we need to make sure that when jobs are automated and technology replace services, the workers can adapt to new roles and keep their jobs. We need the job security. I’m voting yes to strike because I want to have my future secured not only for myself and my family but also for the future generations, ” says Ruby Ann Rubina, a housekeeper at Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Subcontracted workers from HCC also call on Hilton to end subcontracting and bring the workers in-house so that they can be treated equally to the Hilton workers they work alongside. “The reason why I’m voting yes to strike is because I’ve been a member of Local 5 and pay my dues, but we don’t get the same benefits that the Hilton workers get. The only way we can get those benefits is to join them. I’m doing this all for my family. We don’t get full family medical coverage like the Hilton workers. My family needs this,” says Kenziro Kloulubak, a carpet technician at HCC.

Local 5 represents approximately 11,000 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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UNITE HERE Local 5 members approve historic contract

UNITE HERE! Local 5

For immediate release: November 27, 2018

Media Contacts:

Paola Rodelas
Cell Phone: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org

Ikaika Hussey
Cell Phone: (808) 221-2843
ihussey@5.unitehere.org

UNITE HERE Local 5 members approve historic contract

Photos and videos of the ratification vote and the last day of our picket lines can be downloaded here.

(HONOLULU) – Local 5 members voted overwhelmingly today to ratify a historic contract for 2,700 workers at five Maui and Waikiki hotels.

The contract includes hard-won gains: job security; reductions in subcontracting of staff positions; worker involvement in technology deployment; a child/elder fund; a reduction in workload for housekeepers; an increase in wages, an increase in pension contributions; and an increase in health and welfare contributions.

Job security is a key element of the new contract. “No matter how high your pay is or how great your benefits are, if there is no job security, those benefits will disappear if you lose your job,” housekeeper Jowenna Ellazar said.

Robotics are playing an increasing role in the hotel industry, from automated check-ins to R2-D2-like droids that ferry bags up to rooms. Rather than allowing the deployment of technology to be solely the purview of management, the new contract creates a framework for workers to be at the table.

“We want to have a handle on our future. This is an act of self-determination,” Royal Hawaiian front desk worker Jean Te’o-Gibney said.

With this phase of “One Job Should Be Enough” completed successfully, the union now turns its attention to how the principle applies to other hotel workers, other unions, and the broader community of working people.

Collective bargaining agreements at a total of 20 UNITE HERE Local 5 properties expired at the end of June. And over 2,500 Marriott workers in San Francisco are still on strike.

“One job should be enough for all workers — for the hotel workers in Waikiki and Lahaina and also public school teachers from Hilo to Hanalei,” HSTA President Corey Rosenlee said. “All workers contribute to making our community special; we should be afforded respect and dignity.”

“People learned how to win on the lines – how to stand up for themselves, how to stand up for respect and dignity,” Royal Hawaiian hostess Janal Kaina said.

Marriott workers in Detroit, San Jose, San Diego, Oakland, and Boston were also on strike starting in early October, but ended their strikes after coming to agreements with management. Over 2,500 Marriott workers in San Francisco are still on strike.

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UNITE HERE Local 5 represents approximately 11,000 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 270,000 workers throughout the U.S. and Canada. For more information, visit www.unitehere5.org.

Hawaii Hotel Workers Announce Strike Vote Set For September 10 As Thousands Rally on Labor Day in Waikiki

On Labor Day, nearly 2,000 Local 5 members rallied at the Waikiki Beach Marriott and over 200 rallied at the Sheraton Maui to demand that One Job Should Be Enough to live in Hawaii. Six other actions took place across the country. View photos here.

We announced our strike vote for Waikiki Marriott and Kyo-ya hotels, set for September 10:

Honolulu: 6:15am-6:00pm, at Ala Moana Hotel – Garden Lanai Ballroom
Maui: 6:00am-6:00pm, at Sheraton Maui – Employee Cafeteria

Show up or give up!

Local 5 endorses Ikaika Hussey in City Council race against Carol Fukunaga

Local 5 endorses Ikaika Hussey in City Council race
against Carol Fukunaga

(Honolulu, HI) – UNITE HERE Local 5, Hawaii’s Best Union three years in a row and one of the largest private sector unions in the state, is endorsing community advocate and longtime Local 5 ally Ikaika Hussey, who is running against incumbent Carol Fukunaga in the Honolulu City Council District 6 race.

“We are very excited to support Ikaika Hussey, who has been a friend of Local 5 for many years,” says Joli Tokusato, a Local 5 member and Ilikai Hotel worker.

Tokusato also ran for City Council against Carol Fukunaga during the last election in 2014, winning nearly 6,000 votes in the primary election but not quite enough to win the seat. “Running against an incumbent who has held political office since 1978 was a challenge. But as I went door to door talking to voters, I got a sense that people are tired of career politicians. Ikaika has been going door to door since August, talking and listening to the people and sharing his vision for a better Hawai’I,” she said.

Local 5 member Lydia Agustin, who is a housekeeper at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and a Kalihi resident in City Council District 6, expressed strong support for Hussey: “I’m voting for Ikaika Hussey because he is for the community, not for himself. He is for working families. Most of our union contracts expire this year, and we’re calling on big hotel companies like Marriott to make one job enough to live on. Ikaika is joining us in our call that one job should be enough.”

Over 10,000 Local 5 members in the hospitality, healthcare, and food service industries have union contracts expiring this year, starting on June 30. Over 7,600 of them are workers from 20 hotels across Kauai, Oahu, Maui, and Hawai’i Island.

Local 5 represents approximately 11,000 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 workers defy Trump administration in largest union action this year

UNITEHERE! Local 5

Press release for June 27, 2018

Media Contact:
Paola Rodelas
Office Phone: (808) 941-2141 ext. 270
Cell Phone: (808) 333-4782
prodelas@5.unitehere.org

Hawaii workers defy Trump administration in largest union action this year

Over 1,500 Local 5 members and community supporters show unity and strength amidst the Janus decision, demanding that One Job Should Be Enough

View tweets from actions worldwide: #1job #UNITEHERE

(Honolulu, HI) – Over 1,500 members of UNITE HERE Local 5 – the union representing over 11,000 hotel, healthcare, and food service workers – were joined by community supporters in a march and rally in Waikiki to demand that one job should be enough to live in Hawai’i and keep up with the cost of living.

Earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court made a decision on Janus v. AFSCME that rigs the system like never before against working-class families. But Local 5 remains defiant, moving forward with its plans to march down Waikiki.

“The Janus decision is another attack on working families by the Trump administration—just like the family separation happening at the border and yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling supporting the Muslim ban. It shows that the Trump administration and the corporations are scared when working people are united and organizing. So our response is to organize and come together. And we did that today at our One Job Should Be Enough march and rally,” says Gemma Weinstein, President of UNITE HERE Local 5.

Governor David Ige, who also released a statement today expressing his disappointment with the Janus decision, spoke at the rally. He told a cheering crowd of Local 5 members that he “shares their dream that one job should be enough.”

The march in Waikiki was part of the launch of a national campaign to raise standards in the hotel industry with demonstrations led by thousands of union and non-union Marriott workers in eight cities across the United States, including San Francisco, Boston, San Diego, Seattle, Philadelphia and San Jose. Carrying the message “One Job Should Be Enough,” Marriott workers are calling on their employer, the largest and most profitable hotel company in the world, to use its leadership in the global hotel industry to create jobs that are enough to live on.

Around 100 Maui residents who work at Sheraton Maui and Kaanapali Beach Club sign waved and demanded that one job should be enough

Around 100 people on Maui also took action and sign waved in front of Lahaina Cannery Mall. “I’m a single mom of 3 kids and I work two full-time jobs as a phone operator at two hotels. I am fighting for this contract to make these jobs good enough so that I can work one job and spend time with my kids. I also don’t want them to struggle with two jobs like me,” says Laurie DeCoite, who has worked at the Sheraton Maui’s PBX department for 30 years.

Over 10,000 workers have union contracts expiring in 2018. Over 7,600 of them work in 20 hotels on Kauai, Oahu, Maui, and Hawai’i Island. Nearly 4,000 work at Marriott hotels. Local 5 members have their first contract bargaining session with Marriott tomorrow on June 28.

Local 5 represents approximately 11,000 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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