UNITE HERE Local 11: Workers at Aimbridge-Operated SaMo Hotel Submit Letter to City Attorney, Calling for Investigation Into Hotels’ Compliance With Panic Button Law Following Allegations of Sexual Misconduct
April 18 2024 - 7:45PM
Business Wire
Striking workers to speak at pension fund
meeting with investments in Aimbridge
Dozens of workers at the Hampton Inn & Suites Santa Monica
and Courtyard Santa Monica–hotels operated by Aimbridge
Hospitality–walked out on strike this morning. The hotel workers'
union also submitted a letter today to the Santa Monica City
Attorney, alleging that the Hampton Inn Santa Monica may not be in
compliance with the Hotel Worker Protection Ordinance, which was
passed by the City of Santa Monica in 2019. In particular, the
letter alleges that the hotel regularly does not provide panic
buttons to housekeepers, and that the hotel may not have provided
sufficient training or other notice of workers' rights required by
the Ordinance. A primary purpose of this ordinance is to help
protect workers from sexual assault in the workplace.
This comes after six women at two Aimbridge-operated hotels–the
Hampton Inn & Suites Santa Monica and Sheraton Park
Anaheim–have come forward within the past two months alleging they
experienced harassment and verbal abuse at work. Five of the women
have filed pending complaints with the California Civil Rights
Department.
In response to the recent allegations, a group of more than
forty prominent Californians, including Lieutenant Governor Eleni
Kounalakis, State Senator Maria Elena Durazo and co-founder of the
United Farm Workers Dolores Huerta, have sent a letter to
Aimbridge’s new CEO Craig Smith raising urgent concerns and urging
the company to take specific actions to address and prevent sexual
harassment.
Aimbridge’s Vice President of Human Resources-Labor Dave
Williams, responded to the harassment allegations through an email,
denying “that Aimbridge managers have been ineffective or have
failed to ensure full respect for employee rights” and stating, “We
are confident in our position, including the actions taken by
Aimbridge in response to each of the underlying complaints.”
Last week, Aimbridge workers launched strikes and an “occupy”
action near LAX, sending a clear message to Aimbridge that their
response to sexual harassment allegations were insufficient, and
noting that the allegations in some cases accuse managers of
harassment. Moreover, it does not appear the company completed an
investigation of the workers’ complaints prior to denying that any
wrongdoing took place.
At the San Pedro Doubletree, which was operated by Aimbridge
until earlier this year, workers filed a pending class action
lawsuit several months ago against an Aimbridge subsidiary alleging
violations of the panic button and other worker safety provisions
of the Los Angeles Hotel Worker Protection Ordinance.
Workers across 35 hotels have successfully ratified their
historic union contracts at other Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt
properties across Southern California. Aimbridge Hospitality has
failed to meet the new standard. The company operates unionized
hotels in the region that include Aloft El Segundo, Courtyard
Marriott Santa Monica, Doubletree Hotel Downtown Los Angeles,
Fairfield Inn and Suites El Segundo, Hampton Inn & Suites Santa
Monica, Hilton Pasadena, Holiday Inn LAX, Hyatt Regency LAX, and
Sheraton Park Anaheim.
UNITE HERE Local 11 is a labor union
representing more than 32,000 hospitality workers in Southern
California and Arizona that work in hotels, restaurants,
universities, convention centers and airports
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Maria Teresa Kamel | mkamel@unitehere11.org | 210-336-7615