The union representing workers at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia who walked off the job nearly two months ago have finally reached a tentative agreement with the downtown Vancouver hotel.
Unite Here Local 40 said on Sunday that the agreement, which was reached after a marathon 29-hour bargaining session Friday and Saturday, includes protections against sexual harassment and discrimination, as well as greater job security.
Notably, the union says the Hotel Georgia will become the first Vancouver hotel with union representation that will install panic buttons in several departments to help employees report abuses.
“Both sides collaborated to produce a new agreement that will get our people back to work and will allow us to heal and work together to continue to provide our guests with a distinctive Rosewood experience,” the union said in a statement.
About 200 workers walked off the job on Sept. 22 after talks broke down with the hotel.
At the time, those workers joined around 1,300 striking workers from three other Vancouver hotels — the Westin Bayshore, the Hyatt Regency and the Pinnacle Harbourfront — who walked out just days earlier.
Those workers are also represented by Unite Here Local 40, and shared the Hotel Georgia workers’ concerns over job security and harassment. When the walkout began, workers had been without a contract for eight months.
The BC Federation of Labour called for a boycott of the four hotels in support of the striking workers, who were taken to court over the use of air horns and drums while protesting outside the hotels. A judge ruled in favour of the hotels in that case.
The Westin Bayshore, the Hyatt Regency and the Pinnacle Harbourfront reached deals with their workers on Oct. 15, but Hotel Georgia workers vowed to continue striking.
The Hotel Georgia deal has yet to be ratified by all members of the union.