Employees at the San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront Hotel have initiated a process to remove UNITE-HERE Local 2 union officials from their workplace. Erika Chavez, a hotel employee, has submitted a petition for this purpose to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Region 20 in San Francisco. Chavez received free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.
The NLRB is responsible for enforcing federal labor laws and administering elections to certify or decertify unions. Chavez’s petition includes around 75 signatures, surpassing the 30% threshold required to trigger an election under NLRB rules.
California does not have Right to Work protections for private sector employees, allowing Unite Here union officials to mandate dues as a condition of employment. In contrast, Right to Work states make union membership and financial support voluntary.
Chavez’s work unit comprises nearly 200 employees, including housekeeping staff and front desk workers. If the NLRB conducts the requested election and a majority votes against retaining the union, Marriott workers will no longer be obligated to pay dues or adhere to union representation.
“Unite Here union officials have made our lives harder at this hotel,” commented Chavez. “We would be better off without their rules and dues demands, and we hope the NLRB will let us exercise our right to vote them out.”
This effort is part of a broader trend where workers seek assistance from the Foundation in removing Unite Here union officials. In May, Sofitel Washington DC Lafayette Square hotel employees successfully petitioned for a decertification vote against Unite Here Local 25 after they gained power through a “card check” process rather than a secret-ballot election. Mwandu Chibwe led that petition effort, which resulted in a majority voting against continued union presence; however, Foundation attorneys are currently contesting an attempt by Unite Here lawyers to overturn that result.
Since 2023, Foundation attorneys have also aided two groups of workers at Philadelphia International Airport in obtaining votes to oust Unite Here Local 274 union officials.
These efforts coincide with an increase in decertification petition filings by over 40% since 2020, according to NLRB data. Despite low rates of voluntary affiliation with unions, recent policy changes by the Biden-Harris Administration may complicate efforts by rank-and-file workers to remove unwanted unions. A new rule allows union officials to block decertification votes by filing unverified “blocking charges” alleging employer interference.
“Union officials frequently challenge employees when they seek to exercise their right to vote out unwanted union ‘representation,'” stated National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix. “Foundation attorneys have seen this with other workers who sought to oust Unite Here union bosses.”
Mix added that while Foundation attorneys are committed to assisting Chavez and her coworkers, worker rights should not depend on policies favoring union bosses under the current administration.
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