Hotel
Dispute Still Hot
Impasse Is Likely to Linger Past Deadline
San Francisco Examiner - January 21, 2005
By J.K. Dineen
Sunday
marks the end of a 60-day cooling-off period in The City's
ongoing hotel labor dispute with both sides saying there is
little chance for any agreement.
Wednesday,
the San Francisco Multi-Employer Group, which represents the
13 prominent hotels embroiled in the fight, put a new wage
proposal on the table, offering a $1 dollar raise over four
years to non-tipped workers and 50 cent increase to tipped
workers.
But
Local 2 President Mike Casey said the proposal didn't come
close to satisfying the needs of his 4,300 members currently
working without a contract.
"That
is such a waste of time, it's not even worth discussing,"
Casey said. "Until they bring themselves to make a serious
and realistic proposal, there is not much hope for a settlement."
Matt
Adams, managing director of the Hyatt Regency, said the hotels
have made a comprehensive proposal that includes 16 percent
increases in wages and benefits.
Adams
accused the union of not living up to the cooling-off period
agreement -- both sides pledged to bargain aggressively to
settle the dispute. Mayor Gavin Newsom brokered the cooling-off
period after workers walked off the job in a two-week strike,
which was followed by a monthlong lockout of the workers by
the owners.
"They
have no intention of settling by Sunday and it's clear they
never had any intention to settle," Adams said. "Their
members are angry at the union for not working harder to get
this deal done."
Meanwhile
the union continues to coordinate an economic boycott of the
hotels without union contracts. While Casey said the union
would not go back out on strike, it's possible they'll set
up "informational pickets."
The
Convention and Visitors Bureau has received "a handful"
of calls from meeting planners saying they were under pressure
to move from the hotels in question, spokesman Tim Zahner
said.
Wednesday,
California Public Employees' Retirement System Executive Director
Fred Buenrostro told his board that they would be moving a
two-day meeting in March from the Westin St. Francis to the
Fairmont San Jose.
He
said CalPERS was "unable to mitigate or ameliorate the
risk."
"If
there were a strike we would have to cancel," he said.
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