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Hotel strike that shook SF’s tourist industry is one step closer to ending

The tentative agreement comes just days after Marriott workers reached a similar deal.

Protesters stand on a brick sidewalk holding signs that say "DON'T GUT OUR HEALTH CARE" and "MAKE THEM PAY," with a man drumming on a blue barrel.
Strike hotel workers have been demonstrating in San Francisco’s Union Square for months. | Source: Morgan Ellis/The Standard

Just days after striking Marriott hotel workers reached a tentative agreement with their employer, Hyatt workers have done the same. 

The proposed deal — which includes wage increases, the preservation of healthcare, and new protections against understaffing — comes after nearly three months on strike. The new contract would cover about 600 Hyatt workers for four years. 

“Our colleagues are the heart of our business, and we continue to recognize and value the contributions of our employees,” said Michael D’Angelo, Hyatt’s head of labor relations, in a statement confirming the deal.

The ratification vote will begin Saturday morning at the Unite Here Local 2 union office. It would apply to workers at the city’s two Hyatt locations and Japantown’s Hotel Kabuki.

Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie, who reportedly called Marriott owners directly in an effort to resolve the strike, praised the agreement between Hyatt and its workers.

“These historic resolutions will positively impact not only our economy, but also our working families, our hospitality industry, and all San Franciscans,” Lurie said in a statement to The Standard. “Business and labor stand united in ensuring our best days are yet to come.”

Marriott workers ratified their agreement, which a union spokesperson said is the same as the Hyatt deal, Thursday.

Hilton is now the last hotel brand whose San Francisco workers are striking without a deal.

“We’re done with the Marriott, we’re done with the Hyatt,” Hilton doorman Jacov Awoke said in a union press release. “Now it’s time for Hilton to sign the contract before they lose more business.”

Workers from seven hotels have been picketing for nearly three months, banging metal drums and shouting through bullhorns, in their fight for better wages and benefits. But while their efforts are now proving fruitful, nearby residents are fed up with the noise.

A spokesperson for the union said it banned air horns from the picket line about a month ago and reduced the number of metal drums a few weeks back.

This is a developing story.

Max Harrison-Caldwell can be reached at maxhc@sfstandard.com