Helen Liu, a long-time activist for Local 75 at the Royal York, said, «I`m so happy! I did not want to retire until we got that collective agreement. Now I can retire with a better pension plan, and I can be very proud of what we accomplished during my stay at the hotel. UNITE HERE Local 75 (and its predecessor locals) has represented guest workers in Toronto and south-central Ontario since the 1890s. The Fairmont Royal York is the third Westmont-owned hotel to have a collective agreement with Local 75. Many Westmont-owned hotels still do not have a new agreement. Valrie Lue has been Vice-President of Local 75 since 2006. She has over 15 years of experience as a core member of locals, which gives her a deep and comprehensive understanding of our members` priorities. She first became involved in the union in 1988 while a member of the Airport Hilton. Her passion for equality and justice brought her to the shopkeeper, a union representative, and she has been defending the interests of our members ever since.
The agreement contains no concessions and includes improvements in wages, health benefits, retirement, job security, subcontracting protection, workload and the TTC passport subsidy. Guled Warsame is President of Unite Here Local 75 after being unanimously appointed by the Board of Directors and unanimously confirmed by the members. Guled was a human resources manager and union representative for 14 years, and was involved in all major campaigns and negotiated most of the local area`s leading collective agreements. Guled was a community organizer and led the 10-year Rexdale Rising campaign, which successfully secured a community benefits agreement for the new woodbine casino development, the first in Canada. He has organised and represented hotel, restaurant and gambling workers in the union and has been part of every campaign over the past decade. Toronto, ON – On January 13, 2011, the 75 members of the Unite Here local ratified their new collective agreement at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel with 89% in favour. Shelli Sareen is Secretary-Treasurer of Unite Here Local 75. She has been working in the EU for over 13 years and has held several positions. Shelli had the opportunity to work with the International Union`s research department, most recently leading research against some of North America`s largest hotel companies before being elected secretary-treasurer. Shelli has also served on the Board of Directors of the Unite Here Health and Wellness Plan and the Unite Here Pension Plan since the beginning of 2018.
. UNITE HERE traces its history for over a hundred years in North America and has diverse members, mostly women. UNITE (formerly Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees) and HERE (Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union) merged to form UNITE HERE on 8 July 2004. The various members of UNITE HERE include many new immigrants and a high proportion of women representing workers in hotels, restaurants, racetracks and casinos, laundry and catering companies, airport concessions and clothing, textile and general production and distribution centers. Currently, UNITE HERE represents more than 100,000 hotel employees in most major hotel companies in North America. . Our union power comes from grassroots membership. Our members are active in all aspects of union activity. They are our decision-makers and organizers.
The Board of Directors is the governing body of UNITE HERE Local 75. Council represents Local 75 properties in the Greater Toronto Area. Together with the President, Vice-President and Treasurer of Local 75, they are democratically elected to be the voice of our members. The Board of Directors meets at least once a month with a larger management group, the Solidarity Committee. The ethnic and gender diversity of this group of leaders matches our members. Michelle Williams, a member of the Union`s negotiating committee, said: «I am very pleased with the result. This is a step forward for us and for all employees of City Hall. UNITE HERE is a union that represents more than 25,000 members in Canada and more than 275,000 people in North America.
This follows a significant mobilization of 75 local hospitality workers across the city, starting with a citywide strike approval vote last May, a two-day strike at the Novotel Toronto Centre during the G20 summit, one-day strikes at Westmont-owned hotels during the Toronto International Film Festival, and a two-week strike at the Delta Chelsea Hotel. The Royal York is the fifth hotel to move to the Delta Chelsea Hotel after the strike. «During the economic downturn, I sometimes felt like I was doing the work of two or three people. Now we really have a say in staffing and workload,» said Myleen Piansay, another member of the Union`s negotiating committee. .