San Francisco Hyatt Hotel union workers unanimously approve new contract

SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco Hyatt hotel workers who have been on strike for the past three months unanimously approved a new union contract on Saturday, the employees' union said in a press release.

It is the same four-year contract as one reached with Marriott hotels on Thursday that the Unite Here Local 2 union said included wage increases, preserved its health insurance plan, and would prevent understaffing and workload increase that have plagued the industry since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unite Here Local 2, the union representing the striking hotel workers, negotiated a tentative contract with Hyatt Hotels Corporation late Friday. Hundreds of union members who work at the Grand Hyatt San Francisco, Hotel Kabuki, and Hyatt Regency San Francisco at Embarcadero all voted 'yes' on Saturday to ratify the contract.

MORE: Striking SF hotel workers reach tentative deal with Marriott, others remain on picket line

A strike in San Francisco is almost over for thousands of Marriott employees, but the fight continues for other hotel workers.

The union says that the contract's approval for Hyatt hotel workers will add mounting pressure on Hilton San Francisco Union Square. About 650 workers from the hotel have also been on strike for the past three months and intend to remain on strike until they can reach a similar agreement with Hilton Hotels and Resorts.

Lizzy Tapia, president of Unite Here Local 2, said that if they cannot negotiate a fair contract, the union will broaden its strike to include workers from Parc 55 San Francisco, another large hotel owned by Hilton.

"Hilton workers aren't afraid to keep fighting if that's what it takes to win," Tapia said in the union's press release. We're prepared to expand our strike to the Parc 55 if necessary. Hilton workers deserve the same standard as workers at Hyatt and Marriott."

"We're done with the Marriott. We're done with the Hyatt," Jacov Awoke, a doorman at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square for 35 years said in the press release. "Now it's time for Hilton to sign the contract before they lose more business. We will fight as long as it takes."