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ORANGE COUNTY

Grievance Victory at the Anaheim Convention Center

Maria Sanchez, a long time shop steward at the Anaheim Convention Center, was unjustly terminated last year but through mediation she got her job back with no loss of seniority and a full year’s back pay and benefits. Way to go Maria!

Victory at the Anaheim Hilton

Over at the Anaheim Hilton the company was holding on to the server’s and bartender’s cash tips and adding them to their paychecks every two weeks. But those tips belonged to the workers who should have access to the money the moment they are tipped. The workers took it to arbitration and won the right to keep their tips and not have to wait two weeks before receiving the money. Sí se pudo!

Disney Negotiations Update

Once again workers at Disney and the company met to discuss various proposals, including an economic proposal. Stay tuned for further details!

NO KINGS PROTESTS IN AZ, OC, AND DTLA!

On March 28, 2026, an estimated 8 million people participated in over 3,300 “No Kings” protests across all 50 U.S. states and in several international locations. Local 11 participated in three protests, in AZ, in OC, and in DTLA! In Los Angeles we gathered signatures For the Overpaid CEOs tax, in Phoenix we teamed with Worker Power and asked people to send a letter to ASU asking them not to pay poverty wages to their cafeteria workers, and in Anaheim our Co-President Ada Briceño addressed the protesters while we collected signatures for the billionaire tax petition.

Check out the pictures here!

Second Round of Negotiations at Disney

On the second round of negotiations for Disney workers over two dozen cast members testified for two and a half hours about workplace injuries and unreasonable workloads. The union contract at Disney expired January 30 and covers 2,800 workers.

FIRST BARGAINING SESSION FOR THE 2026 DISNEY CONTRACT FIGHT

Over 200 cooks, servers, bartenders, dishwashers, room attendants, front desk agents, and other Disney cast members gathered for our first bargaining session for our 2026 contract fight.

Map of the Laguna Greenbelt and Irvine-

UNITE HERE Local 11 and the Irvine-Laguna Wildlife Corridor

Partner logos for the Irvine Laguna Wildlife Corridor, including UNITE HERE Local 11UNITE HERE Local 11 is a Charter Partner of the Irvine-Laguna Wildlife Corridor, a project of the Laguna Greenbelt that links the south coastal wilderness of Orange County to the Santa Ana Mountains. The goal of the Corridor is to reconnect these wilderness areas for the long-term health of our local wildlife. We are proud to provide this update about the results of our Union’s efforts to create vibrant ecosystems in the communities our members live.

Local 11 has a long history as a coalition member in the creation of the Corridor. Early on, Local 11 joined a coalition of environmental organizations in the Coast to Cleveland Coalition, the predecessor of the the Irvine-Laguna Wildlife Corridor. You can read more about our efforts to protect this land in the letter below from 2018.

Coast to Cleveland letter 2018This key biodiversity corridor came under threat from development. Voters protected it as Open Space Reserve when they passed Measure W in 2002. Local 11 joined a lawsuit with Laguna Greenbelt to protect two key parcels of land near the corridor (outlined in blue and in red in the following map), including one (outlined in blue) called the West Alton Parcel, through which the proposed corridor will now run.

Map showing route of Irvine-Laguna Greenbelt and the key parcels of land UNITE HERE Local 11 helped protect.

Thanks to these efforts, the Corridor project is advancing today. Laguna Greenbelt, Inc. has partnered with the company that is designing the groundbreaking wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway north of Los Angeles and describes some of the benefits of this partnership for our Orange County members: “Humans directly benefit from healthy and robust natural areas within our communities and a fully functioning Wildlife Corridor is not only a key element in sustaining balanced ecosystems, but it also is a functional tool for making roadways safer by eliminating vehicle-wildlife collisions.”

This project will benefit a wide array of species native to the region, from foxes to bobcats to gnatcatchers to roadrunners, ensuring a thriving ecosystem for generations to come. Click here to learn more about the Wildlife Corridor and its progress toward completion, or click the map below to see the latest on Instagram.

Click here to learn more about the Wildlife Corridor and its progress toward completion, or click the map below to see the latest on Instagram.

Map of the Laguna Greenbelt and Irvine-

Disney Workers Win with Local 11!

GLYNNDANA AND MARIA LUISA

Two longtime leaders in Orange County — Glynndana Shevlin and Maria Luisa Posadas — have retired and the Local 11 office in OC gave them a fond farewell. We would like to remember them in these two short videos.

 

This video, part of EL SHOW EPISODE 3 is a portrait of Glynndana as she keeps herself busy during the pandemic.

This video is an excerpt from the “Immigrant Worker Freedom Ride” in which Maria Luisa participated when she was a young leader.

CAPITAL & MAIN: When Workers Unite, Even Disney Has to Listen

“It’s difficult to overstate the significance of last week’s final approval of a $233 million settlement between the Walt Disney Co. and the tens of thousands of Disneyland employees whom the company has underpaid for years.

This is a battle that dates to 2018, when Anaheim voters passed a measure — backed by a coalition of unions — that was squarely intended to force the House of Mouse to pay workers something approaching a living wage. Instead, Disney resisted the law for years before finally being held accountable.”