AFSCME is standing in solidarity with Marriott hotel workers across the country who are striking for decent pay and safe working conditions, among other things.
By the latest count, there are now 7,700 Marriott hotel workers who have walked out on strike in cities across the United States, including Boston, Detroit, Oakland, San Diego, San Francisco and two locations in Hawaii. Their motto could very well speak for millions of American working families: “One Job Should Be Enough.”
They are members of UNITE HERE, a labor union that represents 270,000 working people in the hotel, gaming, food service and other industries.
“Marriott is the richest and most profitable hotel company in the world, and by taking them on in this historic hotel worker strike, UNITE HERE union members are going to change the lives of all workers in our industry,” said D. Taylor, international president of UNITE HERE.
"We're asking for significant raises that bring workers up above the poverty line,” a spokesperson for a UNITE HERE local chapter told CBS. “We want people to be able to work full-time at Marriott and still be able to provide for their families. We're looking at dollars on the hour raises.”
They are also calling for rules to protect them from sexual harassment and protections from being replaced by technology.
The struggle of Marriott hotel workers is that of millions of Americans who often must work two jobs to make ends meet. And it comes at a time of renewed awareness of the power of labor unions, whose approval rating is at a fifteen-year high.
Whether it’s Red for Ed teachers in public schools across the country standing to support every student or hospital workers striking for better patient care and working conditions, working people are joining forces and fighting back. Like the Marriott hotel workers, we are proving once again what can be achieved when we join together in a strong union.