Hotel workers stage two-day strike during busy Labor Day weekend

Westin hotel workers set up picket lines at five this Sunday morning, to the dismay of some sleeping in their hotel room above.

Hotel workers demand better working conditions and higher wages to match the increased workload at three area hotels, including the Westin in downtown Seattle.

They say they’ve been working without a contract since late May. This is a short strike. But it’s coming at a very busy time.

There’s Bumbershoot, the Metallica concert, and PAX West, not to mention the beautiful Labor Day weather.

So, these workers picked this busy time to send a message to management: they want a new contract.

This is how these housekeepers, baristas, cooks, dishwashers, and front desk agents began summer’s last holiday Sunday, picketing the Westin Hotel where they work.

They say some layoffs during COVID are being made permanent, increasing their workload, but not their pay.

“Fewer people are trying to do the same work that more people used to do before the pandemic,” said Anita Seth, Unite Here Local 8 president. “And so, that makes the work harder on everyone. And it also makes it harder on the people who are staying here.”

Hotel workers in Boston, San Francisco and San Jose, California, Greenwich, Connecticut, too, are also on picket lines after working without a contract that expired the last day of May.

Now that hotels are inching their way back toward pre-pandemic occupancy rates and increased revenue, the workers say they should reap some benefits, too.

“Yes, it’s harder to work now,” said Violeta Reyes.

Reyes has worked at the downtown Seattle Westin for 23 years.

“We need more assistance from them,” she said. “More money for the workers.”

But this chanting that began at 5 in the morning has disturbed Westin customer Jennifer Baker from Lubbock, Texas.

“I don’t know why they want to punish me,” Baker said. Punished she said, because, “Well, my room is right above them.”

Still, others staying at the Westin say they support the workers.

“It’s not about it being disturbing to me,” said Cat Walsh, Los Angeles. “It’s about them getting what’s fair. So, I don’t mind them unifying and getting what’s right for them. And I hope they get it.”

The union says these workers might take a break to eat and get water or to change shifts. But they plan to continue picketing overnight.

This strike is set to last just two days.

As for Westin, General Manager Paul Evasick declined to talk on camera. But he says the hotel is running smoothly, and that some of those on strike are still working.

The Westin has been unionized for 50 years, he says, and they will reach a contract with workers this time, too.

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