Workers at Vancouver airport quarantine hotel poised to strike

RICHMOND (NEWS 1130) — Staff at Vancouver’s federal quarantine hotel are ready to strike, saying the company is using the pandemic as an excuse to lay off long-term workers — many of whom are minority women.

UNITE HERE Local 40 issued 72-hour strike notice Thursday, saying the Pacific Gateway Hotel continues to lay off dozens of workers even as the vaccine rollout gives some hope for the industry’s recovery. The federal government took over the hotel to use as a quarantine site last year.

“We will be escalating job action at this hotel in response to their aggressive tactics to crush the majority female workforce at this hotel,” said Zailda Chan, union president.

“Why is Prime Minister Trudeau’s government subsidizing a hotel that fires mothers and grandmothers? Why is a so-called feminist government, allowing women to be fired and replaced on their watch?”

The hotel is largely staffed by workers from the Red Cross but the union says there was no need to replace existing employees.

“They made it worse by contracting out their work, instead of training long-term women, and others at this hotel to clean rooms and deliver meals in a quarantine environment,” Chan said.

“We will keep fighting until every worker gets her job back when the industry recovers.”

BREAKING: Workers from Quarantine Hotel @PacGatewayHotel Ready to Strike: “PM Trudeau, will you cross our picket line when we strike, or will you say ‘no’ to unequal women in the hotel industry?” Press release: https://t.co/cfQdTcmHr4#bcunequalwomen #bcpoli #vanpoli #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/ZcyT0GqzSU

— Unite Here Local 40 (@UniteHere40) March 11, 2021

Two women who have worked at the hotel for decades spoke at a news conference, explaining how they have been affected by the layoffs of their peers and what is at stake if they lose their jobs.

Pardeep is a married mother of three who has worked as a cleaner at the hotel for 27 years.

“We need to provide for our family, but money is very tight. There isn’t enough to get by each month. I need my job, so we can survive. I am not alone, there are so many women at this hotel who have families to support. It’s hard to find another job right now, especially anything that pays good wages and benefits. I should not lose everything I worked so hard for because of the pandemic,” she said.

“We are fighting to save our jobs because we don’t want to be fired and replaced that we will move all of us backward. We deserve the right to return to our jobs.”

Elisa Cardona, who also spoke, worked as a hostess for seven years before she was laid off in March. She’s a single mom to two kids, ages 12 and 13.

“It’s been a very stressful time figuring out how to take care of my family since I lost my job,” she said, adding the amount she receives through Employment Insurance means she has to choose whether to pay the hydro bill or buy groceries.

“I immigrated to Canada from Mexico. Most of the women I work with are like me, we come from around the world — from Latin America, South Asia, China, and Philippines. We gave the best years of our life, to our hotel, and now we’re on the verge of losing everything we worked so hard for.”

The union anticipates another 100 workers will be terminated this month. According to the union, the hotel will replace terminated workers with non-unionized employees. Although a strike would not shut down the hotel, a picket line will be set up.

“Prime Minister Trudeau, we have one question for you: When we go on strike. Will you cross the picket line, or will you join us in saying no two unequal women in the hotel industry?”