A press release recorded Pearce’s concerns about the hotel in her district.
“Long Beach prides ourselves on being a place where businesses, workers and residents treat one another with the dignity and respect that they each deserve,” said Pearce. “The allegations that workers have made about the hotel are disturbing, and the negative impact of this dispute on my residents has been severe. I hope that URS will act quickly to end this dispute.”
Pearce could not be reached for comment for this story before press time.
URS acknowledged Pearce’s statement at its Sept. 8 meeting, however it took issue with its role in resolving the dispute with the hotel workers.
Utah Retirement Systems is a pension administrator for that state’s public employees. Some of these employees are represented by union organizations. According to Brian Holland, communications manager for URS, his organization “has limited partnership interest in the hotel.” He went on further to explain that a company by the name of Noble is a general partner, and it hired Interstate Hotels to serve as the property manager. He added that while Interstate Hotels is really the employer, AEW is the asset manager. AEW delegated the responsibility of the management of the employees to Noble.
Holland sent a statement from AEW, the asset manager.
“The hotel has a strong and well documented policy and practice of supporting its employees’ rights,” AEW said. “This includes supporting the employees’ right to make the important decision of whether to join a union in the privacy of a voting booth, as federal law has provided for over 80 years. The Union (Unite Here) refuses to allow an election.”
Holland further explained that a “third-party management company” represents his organization on matters relating to Westin Long Beach.
“But we have been clear that we respect the employees’ right to a fair and legal process to decide whether to unionize,” Holland said in an email. “The URS Board appreciates Councilmember Pearce’s comments and will continue to monitor the situation.”
Michael Pineschi is a research analyst who works with Unite Here Local 11 on the Westin Long Beach campaign. He accompanied Pearce on her trip to Utah to address those concerns with the Utah Retirement Systems. Pineschi said that while AEW might be the private-equity manager, usually the actual owner can ultimately make the decision to resolve disputes like these. Unite Here has now attempted to address the issue with AEW.
“There’s!a growing list of private-equity managers that have agreed to mitigate the risks associated with labor disputes through labor-peace agreements,” Pineschi said, “and both AEW and URS have thus far refused to meet with stakeholders about that process.”
Jeremy Blasi, a staff attorney with Unite Here Local 11, said that now they have taken the dispute internationally.
“We have thus far found little progress locally,” Blasi said in an email. “So, today the union filed a complaint in France against the French asset-management firm Natixis, whose subsidiary, AEW, oversees the hotel on behalf of Utah Retirement Systems. The complaint alleges that Natixis has violated the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises— a set of international standards covering human rights and labor practices— by contributing to adverse impacts on the hotel’s workers in such areas as the rights of workers to organize and to be paid for all hours of work.”
Blasi further explained that the amount of time it has taken to resolve the labor complaints is one of the reasons why his union has taken the matter up with the AEW’s parent company in France.
“This labor dispute has dragged on for well more than a year,” he said. “But we’re hopeful that the complaint and the various other efforts underway will finally bring about a resolution. All the workers seek is a fair process in which they can make a decision about unionization in an environment of mutual respect and without management interference.”
