Local elected officials are throwing their weight behind a unionization effort at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City.
Writing on behalf of the Board earlier this month, Arlington County Chair Libby Garvey noted that over 70% of housekeeping workers at the hotel next to Reagan National Airport signed union authorization cards in July, filing for a union election.
“As you know, our Arlington community is strongly pro-union, and we support workers who decide to seek a voice on the job through collective bargaining,” Garvey wrote in a letter to the Hyatt Corporation and Gould Property Company, which co-own the location. “We believe that a union benefits the workers, the employer, and the community as a whole. Therefore, we ask that you respect the current efforts of your workers to unionize.”
Organizing with UNITE HERE Local 25, workers are seeking better pay and insurance benefits, and have raised concerns about overwork at the site at 2799 Richmond Highway.
Rep. Don Beyer and state Dels. Adele McClure and Paul Krizek have also joined the picket line at the hotel, according to a Local 25 press release. Photos posted by the union also show state Sen. Barbara Favola, County Board candidate JD Spain, Sr., and County Board members Takis Karantonis, Maureen Coffey and Matt de Ferranti.
The hotel has begun an anti-unionization campaign in advance of a formal vote to be overseen by the National Labor Relations Board this Friday, Aug. 16, Benjy Cannon, director of communications at Local 25, told ARLnow.
We were back outside the @HyattCrystalCty this morning with @YVindman, @APFAunity, and @SEIUVA512!
When we fight, we win! pic.twitter.com/AICGeCP9cq
— UNITE HERE Local 25 (@UHLocal25) August 3, 2024
We stand with the hotel employees, house-keepers and all hospitality workers who work hard to make #ArlingtonVA one of the best destinations to visit in our Nation. They deserve dignifying compensation and working conditions and the freedom to organize in a union. https://t.co/nemRdGrEyP
— Takis Karantonis (@TakisKarantonis) July 27, 2024
Local 25 has also filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge against Hyatt and subcontractor J&B Cleaning over alleged non-compete policies, as well as a complaint with the Department of Labor alleging that J&B Cleaning is paying below minimum wage at the Grand Hyatt Washington.
In D.C., the union is currently calling for a boycott of the Grand Hyatt and has accused the hotel of illegally surveilling and intimidating workers.
“We believe that management interference, intimidation, retaliation, or hiring of union-busting consultants is not only unacceptable but inconsistent with our community’s deeply held values of fairness and respect for workers,” Garvey wrote. “Please know that we have asked the union to keep us informed about management’s response to the organizing campaign.”
The unionization push at Hyatt Regency Crystal City comes after Local 25 secured a new contract in June that will raise D.C.-area union member pay by 25%, with most workers earning about $33 an hour by 2028.
“I think a lot of workers are seeing that and thinking, ‘I deserve the same,'” Cannon said.
The complete text of Garvey’s letter is below.
Dear Mr. Gould and Mr. D’Angelo:
The Arlington County Board has learned that most housekeeping workers at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City, a hotel jointly owned by the Hyatt Corporation and Gould Property Company, have signed authorization cards showing that they want to organize a union in their workplace. Among their concerns are understaffing, safety, and respect.
As you know, our Arlington community is strongly pro-union, and we support workers who decide to seek a voice on the job through collective bargaining. We believe that a union benefits the workers, the employer, and the community as a whole.
Therefore, we ask that you respect the current efforts of your workers to unionize. Our experience with unionized hotels in Arlington indicates that they have not suffered any loss of competitiveness as a result of being unionized. We believe that management interference, intimidation, retaliation, or hiring of union-busting consultants is not only unacceptable but inconsistent with our community’s deeply held values of fairness and respect for workers.
Please know that we have asked the union to keep us informed about management’s response to the organizing campaign. We are sure that you also want to treat your workers fairly, but we understand that Unite Here Local 25 has already filed unfair labor practice charges against Hyatt and its housekeeping subcontractor, J&B Cleaning.
Board members would be happy to discuss this issue if you would like.
Sincerely,
Libby Garvey
Chair
