Clergy vow monthly vigils until workers are re-hired
The fight to unionize Santa Monica’s hotel workers has taken on a higher meaning.
An organization of clergy members influential in enacting Los Angeles’ living wage ordinance held a vigil Tuesday morning in front of the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel to support unionization efforts there.
Leaders of “Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice” say Robin Weiner and Jose Avelar were fired from their jobs at the hotel late last year because they supported unionization efforts — a claim Loews’ management vehemently denies.
The group has vowed to hold similar vigils every month until the two workers are given their jobs back. The workers also received $150 and groceries from the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, which pushed through Los Angeles’ living wage ordinance.
Organizers said neither of the workers were paid for speaking at the vigil and their speeches weren’t scripted.
“Nobody would take a $150 instead of a job,” said Alexia Salvatierra, a Lutheran minister and executive director of the clergy group. “These two individuals were leaders in their workplace and when they began speaking out they were fired.”
Hotel officials said both employees were fired for performance reasons — not for being affiliated with a union.
“Management has no idea which workers are supporting the union and which aren’t,” said Loews spokeswoman Sara Harper. “Our decision was purely based on performance.”
Organizers with the Hotel Employees & Restaurant Employees Union and clergy members are advocating for what is called a “card check election.” The process would prevent hotel management from conducting a campaign against the union and allow hotel workers to take a public vote on whether they want union representation.
“We’re basically asking the company to say nothing and let the workers decide for themselves if they want a union,” said union organizer Lorena Lopez. “When the company is involved the workers are put under a lot of pressure and they do not feel safe in their workplace.”
However, the management of several local hotels have said they would agree to an election administered by the National Labor Relations Board which allows both sides to campaign and provides for secret ballots.
“We believe that’s the fairest way to assess whether the workers want the union representing them in the hotel or not,” Harper said. “Under a neutrality agreement we feel we would basically be selling out our workers for union dues.”
Harper said the hotel management believes the clergy are being organized by HERE, which has been waging a public battle to organize both Loews and the Doubletree Guest Suites Hotel for the past two years.
Clergy officials deny those claims. “We are not here to promote the union,” said Salvatierra, who admitted some overlapping of the two groups existed. “We have different methods but we both want justice for the workers.”
Clergy members held a sit-in prayer service late last month at a restaurant inside the Doubletree to support a worker who had allegedly been suspended for passing out pro-union pamphlets. The worker was re-instated less than a week later.
“Anything worth having is worth struggling for,” said Rev. Ronald Williams of the First A.M.E Church by the Sea. “Dignity is worth having and dignity is what we are fighting for.
“This is a fight that we must win, and if we stand together we will win.”
After about 30 minutes of speeches, hymns and prayers, the group then tried to present a letter to Loews General Manager John Tucker. However, hotel security guards blocked the entrance and refused to accept the letter or deliver it to Tucker.
Salvatierra said the group has been sending clergy members to the hotel to meet with Tucker, but all of their attempts have been rebuffed.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 12, 2002. Read the original PDF.