Oct 16, 2018, 2:12 am
Last edit by: yosithezet
MODERATOR NOTE: While this thread exists for people to discuss the economics and merits of the Marriott strike, any discussion of the general merits of labor unions belongs in OMNI. Any posts which address other posters or characterise people using inflammatory language violates FlyerTalk Rules will be deleted without notice.
Contributions around the current atmosphere and service level at specific hotels can be found at https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marriott-starwood-ritz-carlton-new-consolidated-program/1916714-property-experiences-during-marriott-workers-strike-fall-2018-a-2.html
Contributions around the current atmosphere and service level at specific hotels can be found at https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/marriott-starwood-ritz-carlton-new-consolidated-program/1916714-property-experiences-during-marriott-workers-strike-fall-2018-a-2.html
Merits of Marriott Hotels Strike 2018
Oct 21, 2018, 1:37 pm
#91
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
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That was not the argument being made by the union so just grasp onto a reason to fit within the fixed narrative in your head was convenient and not all that useful. MAGC can be a problem for workers when people leave food waste in the rooms for several days with no cleaning done. The work load is also increased when extra messy people damage things in the room and nobody knows about it for several days as there was no cleaning staff authorized entry. With high levels of occupancy and people waiting to check in, you don't want to have to take a room out of service or have to call in extra staff at the last minute to get rooms back into inventory without a very long wait for the next guest that is waiting at check in.
I am sure there is a happy medium which can be worked out and that is what the union and management at the various hotels should be talking about to resolve.
I am sure there is a happy medium which can be worked out and that is what the union and management at the various hotels should be talking about to resolve.
Oct 21, 2018, 1:49 pm
#92
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Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
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Good article on this in the NYT yesterday
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/11/b...ee-strike.html
I found this section the most telling - a massive
to Marriott
Some credit unions still see their mission in such terms. But in recent decades, many have subtly shifted their approach. As falling interest rates made loans less lucrative, credit unions largely turned to fees to help replace the lost income. Over the past quarter-century, the average value of the fees collected for every dollar of interest income has risen to nearly 17 cents, from just under 7 cents.For credit unions harder pressed to fund their operations, that figure can get much higher. The GE Credit Union of Connecticut makes 34 cents in fees for every dollar of interest on loans, according to last year’s regulatory filings. The Montgomery County Employees Federal Credit Union in Maryland makes 44 cents.
But even against this backdrop, Marriott is an outlier. It takes in 52 cents in fees for every dollar of interest income.
As a result, some Marriott workers find themselves in a kind of financial double jeopardy: Low pay from Marriott keeps their account balances minimal, and those modest balances lead to more fees, crimping their assets further.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/11/b...ee-strike.html
I found this section the most telling - a massive
to MarriottSome credit unions still see their mission in such terms. But in recent decades, many have subtly shifted their approach. As falling interest rates made loans less lucrative, credit unions largely turned to fees to help replace the lost income. Over the past quarter-century, the average value of the fees collected for every dollar of interest income has risen to nearly 17 cents, from just under 7 cents.For credit unions harder pressed to fund their operations, that figure can get much higher. The GE Credit Union of Connecticut makes 34 cents in fees for every dollar of interest on loans, according to last year’s regulatory filings. The Montgomery County Employees Federal Credit Union in Maryland makes 44 cents.
But even against this backdrop, Marriott is an outlier. It takes in 52 cents in fees for every dollar of interest income.
As a result, some Marriott workers find themselves in a kind of financial double jeopardy: Low pay from Marriott keeps their account balances minimal, and those modest balances lead to more fees, crimping their assets further.
Oct 21, 2018, 1:56 pm
#93
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Hahahaha. Have you compared marriott.com with spg.com or their pre-August 18th apps? Have you seen their soaps made in China? The bottles VASA water that is from the municipal tap of Modesto, CA? Trust me, Marriott is not interested in innovation unless it's innovating ways to increase the bottom line.
Oct 21, 2018, 2:02 pm
#94
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Dulles, VA
Programs: UA Life Gold, Marriott Life Titanium
Posts: 2,757
Let's look at some actual information instead of just pretending that strikers are obeying the noise laws no matter what they do.
First, Boston limits noise at ANY time to 70 decibels (exception is permitted construction). Source: https://www.boston.gov/departments/e...s-noise-boston
Second, 70 decibels corresponds to the sound of a hair dryer. Source: https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...art&ajaxhist=0
First, Boston limits noise at ANY time to 70 decibels (exception is permitted construction). Source: https://www.boston.gov/departments/e...s-noise-boston
Second, 70 decibels corresponds to the sound of a hair dryer. Source: https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...art&ajaxhist=0
Oct 21, 2018, 2:42 pm
#95
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
Programs: Marriott Ambassador; AA EXP 3MM; AS MVP, Hilton Gold, CH-47/UH-60/C-23/C-130 VET
Posts: 5,234
1) They're not goons. They are people who cook your food, clean your toilet, make your bed, empty your trash and pick up after you.
2) There is a picket line, which is legal. Individual customers can choose to cross the picket lines, just as employees can. If you find them loud, it's because you chose to sleep within earshot of their picket line.
3) Customers do have a dog in the fight. You're chosing to stay there, while the union is trying to stop you from staying there. Having chosen a side, you now have a dog in the fight.
2) There is a picket line, which is legal. Individual customers can choose to cross the picket lines, just as employees can. If you find them loud, it's because you chose to sleep within earshot of their picket line.
3) Customers do have a dog in the fight. You're chosing to stay there, while the union is trying to stop you from staying there. Having chosen a side, you now have a dog in the fight.
Picket lines are legal. Entering the property or obstructing people from crossing is not.
And yes, customers have a dog in the fight. As I see it, there are a number of issues here besides pay. UNITE is seeking to (a) stop technological innovation on properties -- no online checkin that bypasses the desk, no robots ... they are even protesting an automated system that stacks dishes in Boston, (b) restrict hotels from offering incentives for MAGC, and (c) stop hotels from allowing alternative food delivery to guest rooms. These are all options that many of us find valuable so UNITES position is really anti-guest.
While I certainly respect UNITE's advocacy for their members, none of these issues have any impact on the individual employee working in the hotel. Hotels have significant employee turnover ... even if a hotel automated everything, any reductions in the workforce from automation would easily be absorbed without the need for layoffs.
Oct 21, 2018, 5:19 pm
#96
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: California
Programs: Hyatt Global, Marriot Lifetime Titanium
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Oct 21, 2018, 6:21 pm
#97
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Dulles, VA
Programs: UA Life Gold, Marriott Life Titanium
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You know this to be true....how? Have you questioned everyone picketing? Or are you just assuming that poor unskilled labor would never defend their rights and anyone protesting it must be outside agitators or disinterested randos being paid to protest? That's the usual anti-union belief, which is completely baseless.
Oct 22, 2018, 7:53 pm
#99
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: California
Programs: Hyatt Global, Marriot Lifetime Titanium
Posts: 2,282
1) They're not goons. They are people who cook your food, clean your toilet, make your bed, empty your trash and pick up after you.
2) There is a picket line, which is legal. Individual customers can choose to cross the picket lines, just as employees can. If you find them loud, it's because you chose to sleep within earshot of their picket line.
3) Customers do have a dog in the fight. You're chosing to stay there, while the union is trying to stop you from staying there. Having chosen a side, you now have a dog in the fight.
2) There is a picket line, which is legal. Individual customers can choose to cross the picket lines, just as employees can. If you find them loud, it's because you chose to sleep within earshot of their picket line.
3) Customers do have a dog in the fight. You're chosing to stay there, while the union is trying to stop you from staying there. Having chosen a side, you now have a dog in the fight.
2, 3. What you are purposely ignoring is that guests may have made their booking well before the strike even started so their plans are already set. I've had these pests call me, at my home, before a meeting I scheduled demanding I move my meeting. When I asked them if they were going to pay my cancellation fee, let's just say they didn't agree.
You're right they have a right to picket in a peaceful and respectful way. You're wrong that neutral guests are villains. They may not even know the issues and have other things in their life besides spending the time to validate union demands.
Oct 22, 2018, 7:53 pm
#100
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
Programs: Marriott Ambassador; AA EXP 3MM; AS MVP, Hilton Gold, CH-47/UH-60/C-23/C-130 VET
Posts: 5,234
You know this to be true....how? Have you questioned everyone picketing? Or are you just assuming that poor unskilled labor would never defend their rights and anyone protesting it must be outside agitators or disinterested randos being paid to protest? That's the usual anti-union belief, which is completely baseless.
As an edit ... here is a quote from a Unite Here rep regarding picketing at the Westin Gaslamp:
"WHAT CAN other union members, activists and students do to help?
IF YOU’RE downtown near a hotel that’s on strike, and you’ve got 15 minutes to kill, stop on by and pick up a picket sign! We love to see the solidarity."
https://socialistworker.org/2018/10/...-has-the-money
So ... can you acknowledge the Socialist Worker isn't a hotbed of anti-union belief?
As for the paid picketers, I can't say that there are definitely paid picketers there but I do know it is fairly common in strikes based on my own experience.
Last edited by C17PSGR; Oct 22, 2018 at 8:33 pm
Oct 22, 2018, 7:57 pm
#101
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: SLC/HEL/Anywhere with a Beach
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I'm glad we are (well usually) getting our folios by email. I suspect the union would be protesting that too -- because they used to get slopped under doors.
Oct 23, 2018, 11:09 am
#102
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: California
Programs: Hyatt Global, Marriot Lifetime Titanium
Posts: 2,282
Unions have the right to picket, both by Federal law and Massachusetts law. Law enforcement is not going to infringe on that right on the grounds of noise abatement. It sounds like the picketers are quieting down some at night, so they are aware of what they can and cannot do.
Oct 23, 2018, 2:53 pm
#103
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Dulles, VA
Programs: UA Life Gold, Marriott Life Titanium
Posts: 2,757
Regardless of what you believe should be done, the police are not going to break up a legal picket line by handing out tickets for noise or jaywalking or spitting on the sidewalk or any other ordinance that is ignored 99.99% of the time, by both citizens and police.
If you don't like the strikers, then either stay at a different hotel or shut up and accept the inconvenience. YOU are the one who chose to stay there when you could have gone elsewhere.
