San Diego City Council passes resolution supporting striking hotel workers

In a largely symbolic move, the San Diego City Council on Tuesday threw their overwhelming support behind the more than 700 hotel workers on strike at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront.

In a 7-0 vote, they approved a resolution that calls for a “fair and just” conclusion of the dispute that has embroiled the workers and the Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel since Aug. 31, when the last contract expired.

The resolution accords no funds or resources to support the workers or their cause. But it sends a message of solidarity with workers as the strike pushes into its third week.

One by one, every council member present spoke about fairness and the courage it takes to strike. They lamented the long distances some workers have to commute to their jobs at San Diego hotels and they said it’s tough to need work two jobs to make ends meet.

Roughly 700 unionized hotel workers are striking at the 1,190-room Gaslamp Quarter hotel in a bid for higher wages, staffing increases, improved protections from harassment and reduced workloads. The union has said that efforts to reach an agreement with the hotel started in July and didn’t succeed in time for the contract expiration.

“We will continue to strike until we get a FAIR contract,” a Facebook page of the union states.

Hilton did not provide a statement on Tuesday. Before the strikes began, Hilton had said it was “committed to negotiating in good faith to reach fair and reasonable agreements.”

At Tuesday’s council meeting, hotel worker Rosa Carillo said in Spanish that San Diego is in an “economic crisis” because of high rents. “We are not living. We are surviving,” she continued. She said workers should only require one job to get by. If hotel workers are stretched thin working multiple jobs, they can’t spend time with their children or properly tend to them. “We are very worried,” she said.

In two public notices, the union has said it wants raises that would bring “wages in line with our cost of living in San Diego.”

The union has juxtaposed “record high” hotel profits against lagging worker wages. Data from CoStar, a real estate data and analytics company, shows that both profit and labor costs were up in 2023 compared to 2022 nationwide.

Beyond voicing support in council chambers, the resolution ratifies what city council members have been saying throughout the strike. Lee joined strikers last week. On Monday, the strike’s 16th day, Joe La Cava posted a selfie with workers, with the hashtag #onejobshouldbeenough. Council President Sean Elo-Rivera and council members Stephen Whitburn, Raul Campillo, Henry Foster III, Marni von Wilpert and Vivian Moreno have each marched with workers, sent staff or sent messages of support in the strike’s first days.

In public comment at the meeting, Bridget Browning, the union’s local president, said she and the striking workers were moved and inspired by the council’s support.

“When I started in 1997, literally the only city council person who cared about us was Juan Vargas from District 8,” she said. “The rest only cared about TOT,” or the Transient Occupancy Tax, a city tax collected by tourism lodging properties.

Tuesday’s vote, with seven of nine council members in favor and two absent, reflects the current council’s stance on labor.

“I’m certainly proud to not only be joining this resolution, but to simply recognize that we are living in a pro-labor city and that we are here to stand with our workers,” said Councilmember Kent Lee, who represents District 6.

Von Wilpert she hopes the hotel will deliver a “win-win.”

“We support our hotels,” she said. “We think they’re wonderful, and we think the workers who work there are wonderful and there can be a win-win situation here if hotel management can come back to the negotiating table and do what’s right for our workers.”

No talks were scheduled as of late Tuesday.

San Diego City Council’s resolution is not unique. In July, Minneapolis’s City Council support striking workers with a resolution. Los Angeles City Council did the same last year, compelling Hollywood studios to negotiate with striking writers.

Staff writer Lori Weisberg contributed to this report.

Originally Published: September 17, 2024 at 4:53 p.m.