Hotel accused of illegal anti-union campaign
Labor organizers turned up the heat Thursday on a local hotel by accusing its management of mistreating employees.
The charges, which were filed with the National Labor Relations Board, claim workers at the Four Points Sheraton on Pico Boulevard have been subjected to threats, bribery and coercion from managers after a pro-union employee rally was held last week.
The union filed charges accusing the hotel’s management of waging an anti-union campaign against workers hoping to organize.
“Theoretically there could be” a penalty associated with the charges, said Kurt Petersen, organizing director for the union. “But what’s more likely is we’ll generate community awareness.
“The day after the (rally and march) they began a really ugly and illegal anti-union campaign,” Petersen added. “They give people stuff to make them think they don’t need the union and they threaten people with the loss of things if the union comes in. It’s a straight-out violation of the law.”
Hotel officials denied the allegations, saying the Sheraton values its employees. They accused the union of putting words in the employees’ mouths.
“We don’t operate that way,” said Brenda Tscharner, vice president of human resources for the Kor Group, which owns the Sheraton. “We have every indication from our employees at the Four Points Sheraton that the opinions expressed by the union are not those of our employees.”
“We have every indication from our employees at the Four Points Sheraton that the opinions expressed by the union are not those of our employees.” — – BRENDA TSCHARNER Sheraton spokesperson
In its complaint, the union accuses the hotel of threatening employees with the loss of parking, free food and health insurance if unionization efforts succeed, Petersen said. If employees are unionized, they will not lose those benefits, but rather gain more, he added.
The union also accuses the hotel of circulating an anti-union petition and telling workers “you need to sign this” last week.
Petersen said a hotel manager used her influence to coerce confused workers to sign the petition.
Hotel officials wouldn’t comment on the allegation.
Petersen also said the hotel granted benefits to workers to dissuade them from supporting the union drive. Within 24 hours of last week’s rally, Petersen said the bell staff received raises and other perks they had been demanding for years.
“It’s the classic carrot and stick approach,” he said.
The Kor Group, which owns and operates the Sheraton along with the Viceroy and several other hotels, said it would not respond to the allegations until it was officially served with the charges.
“It is not our practice to litigate cases in the newspaper,” said Tscharner, who added that the hotel was currently in discussions with the union. “At the end of the day it’s up to the employees to choose whether or not they want unionization.”
Employees at last week’s rally said the problems at the Sheraton are particularly acute because the upscale Viceroy, located on Ocean Avenue just south of Colorado Boulevard, already is unionized. They claim the workers at the Viceroy make more money and receive more benefits because they are unionized.
About 100 hotel employees and activists delivered a message to the hotel’s management during last week’s rally that they won’t give up their fight to give workers better conditions and benefits in their jobs.
Petersen said many employees from different departments at the Sheraton have signed affidavits and are willing to testify to the alleged illegal behavior.
“We’re prepared to have a card check election tomorrow,” he added.
Under the card check system, hotels must recognize a union as the bargaining unit for its workers if a majority of the employees sign cards saying the union represents them.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 4, 2003. Read the original PDF.