Hospitality Workers Fight to Keep their Jobs Ahead of the Holiday Season

Labor Union to distribute gifts to 700 workers and their families laid off during COVID-19

MEDIA ADVISORY
Contact:

Wendi Walsh

[email protected]

(305) 934-7373

WHO: Over 700 UNITE HERE Local 355 laid off hospitality workers alongside Miami Gardens City Council member Reggie Leon, and allies.

WHAT: Holiday giveaway of supermarket gift cards and holiday presents ranging from kids toys to gifts for adults for workers who have been laid off since March as they call attention to the need for recall rights and unemployment extension.

WHERE: Betty T. Ferguson Recreational Complex, 3000 NW 199th St, Miami Gardens, FL 33056

WHEN: Friday, December 18 at 11:00 am

WHY: Thousands of South Florida’s hospitality workers who have been furloughed from hotels, casinos, stadiums, and airport concessions have been out of work for more than 9 months. Florida’s abysmal unemployment assistance and the end of all federal aid leaves these workers scrambling for the holiday. The Union for hospitality workers, UNITE HERE, and the Hospitality Employees Advancement and Training Center, HEAT Inc, have partnered to provide some relief to these workers. More than 700 workers will be receiving supermarket gift cards and holiday presents ranging from kids toys to gifts for adults.

 

UNITE HERE employed more than 350 hospitality workers in Florida, and over 1,500 nationally in Nevada, Arizona, and Pennsylvania, to deliver the Presidency for Joe Biden. The Union also had those canvassers knocking doors to support now Mayor Daniella Levine Cava as well as several candidates for County Commission. Florida’s UNITE HERE members are now canvassing to get out the vote in Georgia’s senate races. The stakes are high for UNITE HERE members as they continue to campaign for federal unemployment assistance and other forms of support for laid off workers.

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UNITE HERE Local 355 is a labor union that represents over 7,000 members working in the hotel, gaming, food service, and airport