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Hundreds of hotel unionists on strike last month in San Francisco Marriott hotels stormed San Francisco City Hall on Friday, revealing challenges in one of the country's most expensive regions.
Members of Local 2 of Unite Here, who left their positions beginning in early October, wore red shirts with the words "a job should be enough" and shared their difficulties before a special hearing of the Supervisory Board.
Some cried, describing how hard it was to survive, holding multiple jobs with wages that they thought were too low, barely able to pay high rents and mortgages.
"I live on the edge of the razor overnight," said Nicholas Javier, a Westin St. Francis server, who lives in a one-bedroom hotel.
Julian Penrose, a keeper of the W hotel, said he had to work several times.
"I do not feel like my wife and I could afford to have kids in this city," Penrose said.
"One job should be enough to make ends meet – one job should be enough to start a family, provide for your family … to cover health care … and retire with dignity", said Penrose.
"We live in a city where there is a high demand for two jobs: one just to pay rent and the other for survival," said Diana Gochez, a culinary worker at a hotel.
The hearing took place a day after London Mayor Francisco Breed and Oakland's Libby Schaaf urged Marriott President Arne Sorenson to "listen and work" with the union to put end to the strike.
"The people who work in hotels and restaurants in our city deserve to have enough work to live," Breed and Schaaf said in a letter to Sorenson.
A Marriott spokeswoman said the company was reviewing the letter but did not want to comment on it.
The message from the two mayors arrived two days after Sorenson had rejected the invitation to attend Friday's hearing. In his letter to Supervisor Hillary Ronen, Sorenson criticized Unite Here, claiming that its members were well paid and accusing its leaders of striving to orchestrate a national action instead of signing a contract at the bargaining table.
"We were hoping to reach an agreement a few months ago, but unfortunately the union seemed more interested in a planned strike of 23 hotels in several cities, which it planned to engage in many negotiations," said Sorenson. in a letter. .
Ronen and supervisor Rafael Mandelman expressed their indignation that Sorenson had refused to attend the meeting.
"I am incredibly disappointed, and actually insulted that you have decided not to introduce yourself today," Ronen said.
"I'm just struck by the lack of respect of this great international company," Mandelman said.
Nearly 2,500 housewives, cooks, bartenders and hunters represented by Unite Here Local 2 left work at the Courtyard Marriott Downtown, Marriott Marquis, Marriott Union Square, Palace Hotel, St. Regis, W and Westin St. Francis.
Similar strikes, involving other local unions from Unite Here, took place in Oakland, San Jose and several other cities in the country.
In San Francisco, both sides have made progress on some blocking issues, including job security and technology issues in hotels, according to Unite Here Local 2 president Anand Singh.
But they are far behind when it comes to wages and health care, union officials said.
"It's a crisis," Singh said. "This shameless position taken by this company, an unreasonable position, has an impact on the entire sector."
Discussions are scheduled to resume on November 12.
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