The City of Richmond will boycott three hotels in city centre that are currently behind picket lines.
City council unanimously voted on Monday to not hold any city "business" at the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel, and two adjacent hotels, in order to support the striking workers.
The BC Labour Board has ruled strikers, who are Sheraton employees, can also picket the two adjoining hotels, the Marriott and the Hilton hotels, as they are under the same ownership.
City council made a similar decision two years ago for the Pacific Gateway Hotel – currently rebranded as Radisson Blu – which has been behind pickets lines for several years.
Representatives of Unite Here Local 40 were at city council on Monday asking councillors to support their strike with a boycott.
“Our ongoing strike is fundamentally about earning enough to live,” said Felisha Perry, a striking banquet server at the Sheraton, in a press release. “Council has shown they stand with working people fighting for a living wage and are helping us send a message to one of Canada’s wealthiest hotel owners to respect workers and resolve this dispute.”
The striking workers are asking for pay increases that will bring them closer to Metro Vancouver’s living wage of $25.68 per hour.
The hotel workers have been on strike for about seven months.
They are currently in mediation, according to the union.
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