Tentative settlement reached in Hilton Hawaiian Village contract talks

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The 40-day long walkout at the Hilton Hawaiian Village may be coming to an end soon.
Representatives from the Hilton and the union representing 1,800 striking workers announced Saturday night that a tentative agreement had been reached.
Hilton released a statement from Adam Wit, the company’s vice president and senior counsel for labor relations, which said:
”We are pleased to have reached a tentative labor agreement with UNITE HERE Local 5, which represents some of our Team Members at Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort. We believe this agreement is beneficial to our valued Team Members and to our hotel. We look forward to welcoming our Team Members back to work and continuing to provide our guests with our signature hospitality.”
A representative from Unite HERE! Local 5 confirmed that a tentative agreement had been reached. The union said a ratification vote will be held Monday, and workers could return to the job Tuesday.
No details on the agreement were immediately available.
Their union had been calling for higher pay, increased staffing, and the full return of guest services like room service and daily room cleaning, which was cut or reduced during the pandemic.
The last major hotel workers strike in 2018 lasted 51 days.
Earlier Saturday, striking workers were joined by several supporters and organizations in a march from Ala Moana Beach Park to the resort entrance.
Among the crowd on Saturday was a familiar face — union president Gemma Weinstein, who led the highly publicized hotel workers strike in 2018. That walkout ended with workers at five other hotels getting significant pay raises along with other benefits.
“The workers will fight as long as we need to. If we need to fight 51 days to get what we need, we will do that,” said Weinstein.
Meanwhile, complaints from hotel guests about noise and service disruptions are not going away.
“Very loud. I can’t fall asleep,” said one hotel guest.
But many guests support the union’s fight to return pre-pandemic services like in-room dining.
“You pay a lot of money to come to a hotel but you expect to get daily services,” said another visitor.
Unite HERE Local 5 said more than 32-hundred union members at seven hotels are still working without a contract and could strike at any time.
Copyright 2024 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.