Thousands of Southern California hotel workers are back at work after three days on the picket lines.
Housekeepers, cooks and reception desk workers unionized with UNITE HERE 11 began their strike on Sunday, fighting for higher pay and better benefits. The strike was paused on Wednesday morning, but while there's still no contract agreement, the workers could walk off the job again at any time.
A union leader says the soaring cost of living here in in Los Angeles is a top concern for hospitality workers, many of whom commute from hours away because they cannot afford to live near their jobs.
“You have housekeepers that work here, for example, at the JW Marriott and workers that work here who have to commute two to three hours because they cannot afford with the wages that they make to live near where they work,” Maria Hernandez told KNX News. “You tell that to Brenda who lives in Apple Valley sleeping two hours a night because that is the only place she could afford a home.”
Union officials said their members currently earn $20 to $25 an hour. They're asking for an immediate $5 raise, and an additional $3 in subsequent years of the contract, along with improvements in health care and retirement benefits.
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