Hotel workers struggling under new owner get their Thanksgiving turkeys after all
By Marc Levy
October 24, 2012
Le Méridien Hotel management said it’s feeling no impact from a boycott called by workers and city officials a little over a week ago, but a union official warns that it’s early yet.
Workers called Oct. 11 for a boycott of their own employer and appeared the next Monday before the City Council, where a ban on holding city events was affirmed unanimously by councillors. In addition to demanding such events as a biennial post-election celebration be moved from the 20 Sidney St. hotel, some also testified to putting a more personal stamp on their opposition to management’s practices, with vice mayor Denise Simmons saying she had stopped having tea at the hotel and councillor Tim Toomey saying he was telling people to take their business elsewhere.
The Le Méridien Hotel faces a boycott call from its own workers amid accusations they “endure crushing workloads” after staff cutbacks and the owners have rejected calls to discuss unionization.
By Lawrence Harmon, The Boston Globe
Both the Hilton Boston Downtown and the Omni Parker House are high-quality hotels popular with tourists and business travelers who want to be in the center of the city. You can trust that the beds at both hotels are top-notch. But there is a big pay gap when it comes to the room attendants who make those beds.