Kaiser Permanente, Chinese Hospital and PacifiCare Extend Health Coverage for Locked-Out W

Kaiser Permanente, Chinese Hospital and PacifiCare Extend Health Coverage for Locked-Out Workers

With 4,000 workers facing an end to their medical benefits due to the hotel companies' lockout, Chinese Community Health Plan and PacifiCare have joined Kaiser Permanente in announcing that they will continue medical coverage through January 31st, 2005.

The decisions came a week after the hotels blocked the union's effort to extend coverage for locked out workers using a small surplus from the workers' $22 million health fund. Hotel representatives voted against this move at the fund's board meeting. Adding insult to injury, the hotel companies then came to the bargaining table and proposed to stop paying for health care altogether until a total of $9 million was drained from the fund, to their own benefit. For more information, click here.

Meanwhile, solidarity actions took place around the world to support San Francisco's locked-out workers. In New York yesterday, over 1000 hotel workers and their allies rallied in front of the InterContinental Barclay. And in London, members of the trade union GMB leafleted the InterContinental Hyde Park, while members of the German union NGG heard first hand from Local 2 workers.

The hotel companies' lockout of San Francisco workers has now entered its seventh week. The following hotels are locked out. Guests should click here to find alternative accommodations.

Argent Hotel
Crowne Plaza Union Square
Four Seasons
Fairmont
Grand Hyatt Union Square
Hilton San Francisco
Holiday Inn Civic Center
Holiday Inn Express
Holiday Inn Fisherman's Wharf
Hyatt Regency Embarcadero Center
Mark Hopkins Inter-Continental
Omni Hotel
Sheraton Palace
Westin St. Francis

The contract negotiations affect 8,000 union members at more than 60 hotels and motels amounting to more than 85% of the industry in San Francisco. UNITE HERE! Local 2 represents cooks, room cleaners, bartenders, bellmen, food and beverage servers, bussers, housemen, PBX operators and dishwashers.