The front page of todays LA Buisness section reported on the hotel workers in downtown LA shutting down a street for quite some time... Any IMCistas have news?

This is the email sent out to community supporters of the hotel workers after the actions on friday (where an intersection was blocked) - for more information, or to join the email list, email clozano@herelocal11.org.

LOCKOUT OF HOTEL WORKERS AVERTED AT LAST MINUTE

Late Thursday night, August 12th at the 11th hour, Federal Mediation

and

Conciliation Service director Peter J. Hurtgen stepped in and averted a

threatened lockout of hotel workers by the 9 hotels who make up the Los

Angeles Employers

Council.

2,800 housekeepers, dishwashers, cooks, bellmen and banquet waiters,

some of

whom have worked for the hotels for 15 years or more, would have been

locked

out of their jobs and prevented from working if the lockout had taken

place.

Mr. Hurtgen met separately on Monday, August 16th with representatives

of

both sides in Los Angeles.

The hotels agreed to call off their lockout and halt their campaigning

against the union through one-on-one meetings and captive audience

meetings.

The union, which had supported mediation, agreed to no picket lines in

front

of the

hotels.

This is the latest news in the campaign of hotel workers to win a new

contract with the 9 luxury hotels that negotiate together. These

hotels, in

late June, terminated the union contract and declared an impasse in

negotiations. Hotels began implementing provisions of their last

contract

offer despite the rejection of that offer by 92% of the workers on June

1st.

The hotels would not agree to set future dates to meet with the union

negotiating committee.

A lockout would have hurt workers and their families and would be

devastating for the Los Angeles economy and the tourists who are

visiting

our city. While we are happy that a lockout was averted, we know that

it is

still a possibility and that we must continue to organize support from

the

community to assist hotel workers if a lockout happens in the future.

Please mark your calendar for Friday September 3 at 11:00 am when we

will

unveil a "Wall of Support" with the names of 2,800 community members

who

have pledged to stand with hotel workers as they struggle for a new

contract

and a decent life.