And what travelers can do.
Travelers bound for the Hawaiian island of O’ahu next month could be welcomed by more than world-famous beaches, top restaurants, and some of Hawai’i’s most popular visitor attractions. They could also be welcomed by striking workers at some of the island’s top resorts, if workers vote to strike on August 8.
Nearly 5,000 members of Unite Here, a hospitality workers union with local lodges in the United States and Canada, are seeking wage increases including inflation protections, staffing improvements including premium pay for short-staffing situations, and better severance for layoffs.
Union members held informational picketing in front of the Ilikai Hotel & Luxury Suites last fall. At that hotel, workers had been without an amended contract for more than five years, and workers wanted the hotel to offer daily room cleaning, which they say would lessen their workload when cleaning rooms.
FairHotel.org, a consumer-facing website operated by the union, lists several Waikiki hotel properties as “At Risk” for labor actions, including Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort; Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa; Ilikai Hotel & Luxury Suites; The Royal Hawaiian, a Luxury Collection Resort, Waikiki; Moana Surfrider, a Westin Resort & Spa, Waikiki Beach; Sheraton Princess Kaiulani, Sheraton Waikiki Beach Resort, and Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa.
The union says that hotel profitability has returned since the pandemic, but workers have not gotten pay raises.
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Hawai’i Tourism Authority’s Year-to-date hotel numbers for the island of O’ahu support that assertion. Revenue per available room (RevPar) was up 5.2% for the year through May, compared to the same period in 2023, while occupancy was up only 1.4%–the bulk of the increase in revenues came from an increase in average rates, meaning hotels are earning more, while the increase in guests needing service from workers hasn’t increased as quickly.
Worker strikes do not tend to close hotels outright. In 2018, Unite Here members struck five Marriott-branded hotels in Hawai’i for 51 days, in what was then the longest labor action by the union’s members since 1970. The involved hotels—many of which are the same hotels threatened by the current strike vote—did not close or turn away guests during the strike, instead closing restaurants and ending daily room cleaning for guests who weren’t checking in or checking out, instead piling towels and amenities near elevators on each floor.
What Travelers Can Do
If visitors arrive to find the services or amenities at their booked hotel significantly altered as the result of a work stoppage, they should document how the hotel’s services are different from what was advertised at the time of booking. If the traveler finds the accommodation unsuitable because of the work stoppage, they should refuse the room and request a refund after finding alternate accommodations.
If hotels refuse to provide refunds or waive fees because properties remain open (in spite of the reduced service) most credit cards will resolve the situation via the dispute process, although it’s important to outline the difference between the services that were promised, and the services that were not available. It’s also important to refuse the hotel room—assertions that a hotel room is unacceptable if the guest ultimately accepts the accommodations by staying in the room.
In the absence of available alternate accommodations, it may be possible to negotiate a lower rate for the reservation at check-in, reflecting the reduced service. Travelers should keep in mind that accepting a hotel room for a reduced rate during a work stoppage tends to equate tacit acceptance of the quality of the accommodations for the new negotiated rate, so further compensation or refunds are unlikely to be considered.
Travelers can also periodically check local news and recent guest reviews to learn of any strikes that may affect hotel services, giving them time to rebook their accommodations prior to arrival. Visitors holding reservations at the affected properties should phone their hotels directly after August 8 to find out if their hotel will be impacted.