🏨😳 CHICAGO HOTEL WORKERS SAID “WE CAN CHECK OUT TOO!” THOUSANDS AUTHORIZE STRIKE AT MORE THAN 40 HOTELS

Chicago tourists might want to make sure they know where the extra towels are because thousands of downtown hotel workers just gave their union permission to call a strike.

Members of UNITE HERE Local 1 have overwhelmingly voted to authorize strikes after contract negotiations with major Chicago hotels failed to produce new agreements. According to the union, 85% of participating workers voted yes.

And we're not talking about three people from housekeeping and somebody from the front desk.

This dispute covers more than 7,000 workers at over 40 hotels in downtown Chicago and around McCormick Place, including room attendants, cooks, dishwashers, servers, front-desk employees and other hospitality workers. Most of their contracts expired August 31.

😳 AND THEY COULD WALK OUT

Here's the important distinction:

THEY ARE NOT ALL ON STRIKE YET.

A strike authorization gives the union the ability to call workers out if negotiations don't produce agreements.

UNITE HERE Local 1 says strikes could now be called at affected hotels, and if all of those workers ultimately walked out, the union says it would become the largest hotel-worker strike in Chicago history.

Baby, that's not somebody calling off because their stomach hurts.

That's potentially thousands of people collectively saying:

“Since y'all think this hotel runs itself... let's find out.” 😭

💰 WHAT DO THE WORKERS WANT?

The union says workers are seeking better wages, health-care and pension protections, safer workloads and protections for immigrant workers. Earlier this month, more than 7,000 employees were already working without new contracts after agreements covering 46 hotels expired.

Workers have also complained about demanding schedules and workloads.

One Palmer House Hilton room attendant told CBS Chicago through the union that she has been scheduled for six consecutive days and described leaving work exhausted while still needing the income to support her four children.

And that's where Lady Red has a question.

How many hotel rooms do y'all think one human being can clean before she starts seeing fitted sheets in her dreams?!

Because making a bed at home already makes me mad.

Now imagine somebody telling you:

“Great job. There are 27 more down the hall.”

Ma'am, find Jesus and another housekeeper. 😂

🏨 THE HOTEL INDUSTRY RESPONDS

The Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association says it is concerned about what a work stoppage could mean for employees, visitors, hotels and Chicago's economy.

The association says it hopes hotel operators and union representatives can reach a mutually acceptable agreement that recognizes workers' contributions while also considering the financial and operational pressures facing hotels.

Hyatt previously told Axios that it had offered competitive wages and benefits, said employees' existing wages and benefits remained unchanged during negotiations, and said contingency plans were in place in case of a labor disruption.

So both sides are still at the table.

But now the workers have put something considerably larger than a mint on the pillow:

A STRIKE AUTHORIZATION.

👀 WE'VE SEEN THIS MOVIE BEFORE

Chicago hotel workers last staged a major citywide strike in 2018, when employees at 26 hotels walked off the job.

Those hotels eventually reached agreements with workers within roughly a month.

This time, however, the potential scale is even larger.

More than 7,000 workers.

More than 40 hotels.

And Chicago is a convention and tourism city, which means a widespread walkout could become noticeable very quickly if negotiations break down.

🎙️ LADY RED SAYS...

Listen.

A hotel can have marble floors, $19 cocktails, a rooftop pool and a lobby smelling like somebody imported the air directly from Paris.

But somebody still has to clean the rooms, cook the food, wash the dishes, check in the guests, make the beds and keep the whole operation moving.

So if more than 7,000 workers are standing there saying, “We need to talk,”

you might want to TALK.

Because the absolute worst time to discover how important your employees are...

is five minutes after they all stop working. 😳😂

And Chicago visitors, don't panic yet.

No citywide strike has begun.

But the workers have officially authorized one.

So for now, negotiations continue.

And somewhere downtown, I guarantee you somebody in hotel management just looked at a stack of dirty towels and whispered:

“Let's get back to that bargaining table.” 😂

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