Thousands of downtown hotel workers go on strike Friday

CHICAGO (WLS) –

Thousands of workers from downtown hotels went on strike Friday morning.

The workers went out around 5 o'clock in the morning. The workers include maids, waiters, cooks and doormen.

"I hope it's going to be difficult," said Carolina Sanchez, a Hyatt Regency banquet server. "I hope the managers have to do our job so that they know what it's doing."

Jessica Ramos has been a housekeeper for the Hyatt Regency Hotel along Wacker Drive for five years. The mother of four is fighting alongside her colleagues to seek health care throughout the year.

"Every year we are fired and I lose my health care for about three months a year and I have a family and I think it's unfair," she said.

More than 3,200 UNITE HERE Local 1 workers voted to authorize a strike and 97% voted yes. Their current contract expired on August 31st.

Striking workers also demand higher wages to cope with the cost of living.

"Nobody knows how hard a job is unless you do it yourself, so it's really hard work and we just think we deserve more," Ramos said.

Hotel employees picket at 25 downtown hotels and boutiques, including the Hilton Palmer House, the Allegro Hotel on Randolph, the Drake on the Gold Coast and the JW Marriott. All hotels remain open despite the strike.

For a complete list of hotels, click here.

"It's tough, we make them earn a lot of money," said Bearer Darnell Irving. "We just brought Lollapalooza and they made a lot of money, why not share with us?"

The strikers say that they want hotels and the three major hotel chains, including Hyatts, Hiltons and Marriotts, to know that they are ready to walk on the picket lines as long as necessary.

"We just want a contract," said Irving. "We want them to come to the table and make an agreement with us."

A Hyatt spokesman issued a statement on the strike saying: "Hyatt has a longstanding and close relationship with the unions representing its colleagues, and Hyatt and UNITE HERE have already signed successful agreements this year in other markets and we will continue to negotiate in good faith in Chicago.

Our colleagues are at the heart of our business and we respect their right to express their opinions as negotiations continue. Hyatt hotels plan to continue operations.

We just finished our second bargaining meeting with Local 1 last week, where the union presented multiple proposals for the first time and said there would be more to come. Additional trading sessions between Hyatt and Local 1 are scheduled throughout the month. The benefits and wages of colleagues remain unchanged when we negotiate a new agreement.

Chicago Hyatt hotels, like across the country, offer competitive salaries and benefits to our colleagues, including health care, various wellness initiatives, and generous contributions to retirement. We remain committed to fostering a safe and inclusive workplace that allows an average colleague to have more than 12 years of experience and constant recognition. Our goal is to take care of people so that they can be the best and the well-being of our colleagues is our first priority. "