PRESS RELEASE; CA Labor Commissioner Issues $4.8 Million Citation to Hyatt Regency Long Beach for Failing to Rehire Laid Off Workers
Long Beach, CA – The California Labor Commissioner’s Office issued a citation Monday totalling $4.8 million to the Hyatt Regency Long Beach, alleging that the hotel failed to recall, or to timely recall, workers to their former positions in violation of state law. The citation is the largest citation known to have been issued against a hotel company in state history.
Signed into law in 2021, SB-93 requires hotels, event centers, and other hospitality businesses to offer employees whom they laid off due the COVID-19 downturn in tourism an opportunity to return to work in open positions for which they are qualified in order of seniority. The law, recently extended until December 31, 2024, provides job protection to some 700,000 laid-off housekeepers, cooks, waiters, and others across the state.
Rigoberto Villagrana, who was laid off by the Hyatt Regency after working at the hotel since 1996, said, “Being laid off during the pandemic has been devastating for me and my family. We’ve struggled to pay our mortgage and keep food on the table. I am really glad to see the state stepping in to make sure Hyatt Regency complies with the law.”
The Labor Commissioner’s Office, which is led by Labor Commissioner Lilia Garcia-Brower, conducted an investigation in response to complaints from workers alleging violations of the recall law.
“Some of these employees had as much as 24 years of experience, and were suddenly out of work due to a public health emergency,” said Labor Commissioner Lilia Garcia-Brower. “The employer failed to offer them their old jobs back in compliance with the law.”
After investigating Hyatt Regency’s recall practices, the agency issued a citation to Hyatt Regency for $4,799,563.84 in liquidated damages and interest owed to dozens of workers and civil penalties for the hotel’s alleged failure to recall, or timely recall, workers laid-off due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kurt Petersen, co-president of UNITE HERE Local 11, the hospitality workers’ union that fought for the law and helped the workers file complaints, said, “The Hyatt Regency in Long Beach has treated its veteran workers like they are disposable. This kind of behavior is not only immoral, but as the agency’s massive citation shows, it can also be illegal.” He continued, “I commend the Labor Commissioner for conducting such a thorough investigation and showing that our worker protection laws have real teeth.”
LAX Hotels Walk Out to Protest Employers’ Proposal to Eliminate Affordable Healthcare
Los Angeles, CA: Hundreds of hotel workers at multiple properties near LAX walked out on strike this morning to protest the employers’ proposal to eliminate affordable healthcare. During contentious negotiations last Wednesday, the hotel proposed a 1% annual increase to pay for healthcare – 6 times less than the projected cost of health care increases.
The hotels’ proposal would result in massive cuts to members’ healthcare, including increased co-pays and massive changes in eligibility. Under the current plan, workers pay no more than $20 a month for family insurance and eligibility for healthcare ranges between 60 and 80 hours a month.
“We fought for decades to win exceptional healthcare for our families. Now we are fighting for a wage that allows us to live in Los Angeles,” said Yesenia Reyes, a housekeeper at the Sheraton Gateway LAX. “Our selfish employers want us to choose between staying healthy and staying housed. Meanwhile, hotel CEOs are celebrating record profits and I am balancing two full time jobs to take care of my kids.”
“Never have I seen a more punitive, draconian proposal than what these greedy hotel owners put across the table. They are asking workers to choose between a meager pay raise and excellent healthcare,” said Kurt Petersen, Co-President of UNITE HERE Local 11. “Our members who sacrificed everything to keep this industry alive during the pandemic have no choice but to walk out again.”
The Westin Bonaventure and BIltmore Los Angeles have signed agreements that guarantee a living wage and protect the workers.
