CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hyatt Hotels Corporation set the record straight about UniteHere’s three-year-old campaign against Hyatt in a full-page ad published in today’s Washington Post.
The UniteHere campaign is not about creating a better workplace at Hyatt hotels. It is an attempt to boost union membership at non-union Hyatt hotels through card check, a non-democratic and often-intimidating process for workers.
To prop up its campaign, the union has refused to allow Hyatt associates represented by UniteHere to vote on the same wage and benefits proposals the union accepted at Starwood and Hilton hotels. As a result, UniteHere has denied Hyatt associates it represents the wage and benefit increases they deserve for nearly three years.
“While UniteHere leaders are pursuing more dues-paying members, and raising dues on Chicago members an astonishing 10 percent, Hyatt has been putting its associates first by protecting their right to a fair choice and standing ready to pay the raises they should have had three years ago,” said Doug Patrick, senior vice president – human resources, Hyatt Hotels Corporation. “It’s our associates who make a difference in the lives of Hyatt guests and coworkers each day. Their wellbeing is fundamental to our success, and we want to reach an agreement so they can get the pay and benefits they deserve.”
Contrary to what UniteHere says, Hyatt provides industry-leading wage and benefits packages, maintains an outstanding workplace safety record, and is a recognized leader in promoting a diverse workforce. The average tenure of Hyatt housekeepers in the U.S. is more than 12 years, and Hyatt is consistently distinguished as a great place to work in independent surveys of our associates, including our housekeepers.
See the full text of today’s Washington Post ad below, and visit hyattworkplace.com for more information about Hyatt and UniteHere.
Standing Up for the Rights of Our Hyatt Associates
A deep respect for our associates – the people who provide hospitality to Hyatt guests around the world – is central to our culture and fundamental to our success. We’re very proud that Hyatt hotels are great places to work. And that’s not just our opinion:
- We received the 2012 Gallup Great Workplace Award based on independent surveys of our associates, including our housekeepers, whose average tenure with us is more than 12 years.
- Media from Baltimore and Chicago to Denver and San Francisco have honored Hyatt on their Best Places to Work lists.
- We have been honored by the Human Rights Campaign, Hispanic Business magazine and the NAACP for our support of our LGBT, Hispanic and African- American employees.
- CareerBliss recently named Hyatt the happiest hotel company.
By any measure, Hyatt maintains an outstanding safety record, provides industry-leading wage and benefits packages, and is a recognized leader in promoting a diverse workforce.
So why is the leadership of the union UniteHere waging a campaign against our company?
UniteHere’s claims are an attempt to boost membership by pressuring Hyatt to allow the union to organize more hotels through the intimidating “card-check” process. We believe our associates have the right to a secret ballot. Last year, we petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to hold supervised secret-ballot elections at our non-union hotels. The union flatly refused to participate.
To get their way, UniteHere leaders have denied members they already have – our associates in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Waikiki – the right to vote on contracts containing wage increases that are the same as those the union has accepted at Hilton and Starwood hotels. The regional director of the National Labor Relations Board in Chicago recently found that UniteHere has bargained in bad faith and made illegal demands during contract negotiations.
While union leaders direct precious members’ dues toward publicity stunts, we stand ready to pay the raises our associates should have gotten long ago, which will be delivered upon completion of new contracts. And now, the call for a global boycott of Hyatt will have a direct and negative impact on our associates, who depend on business in their hotels for their livelihoods.
Our union associates are being used in the union leaders’ self-serving campaign to increase union membership and dues. It is time for UniteHere leaders to do the right thing for the members and families they’re paid to represent by calling for a contract vote.
About Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family strive to make a difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by providing authentic hospitality. The Company's subsidiaries manage, franchise, own and develop hotels and resorts under the Hyatt®, Park Hyatt®, Andaz®, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place® and Hyatt HouseTM. Hyatt House is changing its brand identity from Hyatt Summerfield Suites®. Hyatt Residential Group, Inc., a Hyatt Hotels Corporation subsidiary, develops, operates, markets or licenses Hyatt ResidencesTM and Hyatt Vacation Club®, which is changing its name to Hyatt Residence ClubTM. As of March 31, 2012, the Company's worldwide portfolio consisted of 488 properties in 45 countries. For more information, please visit www.hyatt.com.