Workers, Summer Organizers Rally in Downtown Seattle

July 15, 2011 Organizing Beyond Barriers This summer, over 100 summer folks are spending their summer organizing internships at Unite Here locals around the U.S. and Canada. We are lucky to have four of them with us in Seattle. Here’s their first report: “During our first week as summer organizers with UNITE HERE Local 8 […]

Workers and Community Tell Hilton Management: We Are One!

On Thursday, June 30, workers from the Doubletree and Hilton hotels in SeaTac presented a petition to the Joint Director of Human Resources putting management on alert that they are ready to fight for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. They also let the Hilton corporation know that they will support their union brothers and […]

Hotel Workers to Picket Westin Hotel

As Seattle hotels prosper, workers call for their share of the economic recovery; union contracts already expired. Over 150 workers from Seattle-area hotels will gather this afternoon in front of the Westin hotel to call for livable wages, job security, and respect on the job. This summer, union contracts covering over 1,400 workers have expired.  […]

LGBT Community Forum – June 28!

Join Us for an LGBT Community Forum Featuring renowned LGBT activist Cleve Jones! TUESDAY, June 28th at 4:30pm Kaladi Brothers Café ♦ 511 E Pike St. LGBT travelers spend over $60 billion a year on business and recreational travel, and major hotel chains spend millions of dollars annually on advertising that specifically targets the gay […]

Local 8 Members Speak Out Against Guest Misconduct

June 6, 2011, Chris Thomas, Public News Service – WA SEATTLE – Hotel housekeepers in Washington and several other states say it’s time to break the silence about what they claim is the routine sexual misconduct they face in their jobs. Their campaign comes in the wake of two high-profile alleged sexual assaults on housekeepers […]

Housekeepers Across North America Speak Out Against Abuses at Work

Breaking the Silence When two housekeepers in New York came forward to report assault on the job, taking on some of the most powerful men in the world, they exposed some of the grittier and oftentimes hidden aspects of hotel work–the work of scrubbing toilets, changing sheets, and encountering guests alone behind closed doors. Hotel […]

Community Forum and New Report on Paid Sick Days in Seattle

When you’re sick, staying home is the responsible thing to do. This is particularly true when you work in industries where you handle and serve food or provide health care services. But in Seattle, an estimated 190,000 workers don’t get paid sick days and therefore can’t afford to do the right thing and stay home. […]

May Day Rally at the Seattle Hilton

May 2, 2011 On the heels of an exciting community event last week, UNITE HERE! Local 8 members started to turn up the heat on hospitality employers in the streets of downtown Seattle. At a rally for immigrant and workers’ rights in front of the Seattle Hilton, hotel workers united with thousands of people demonstrating […]