South Florida Hotel Workers March for Higher Wages

WHO: South Florida hotel workers, including housekeepers and cooks, alongside community allies.

WHAT: Press conference followed by a march across Miami Beach’s historic hotels

WHERE: Eden Roc Miami Beach, 4525 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140

WHEN: Monday, May 9 at 11:30 am.

Miami has become one of the most expensive cities in the country, hitting a cost of living 10% higher than the national average according to the U.S. Census Bureau, yet the average wage for hotel workers isn’t enough to afford to live here. With cost-of-living skyrocketing and the increase in temporary work, a minimum wage of $20 an hour is what workers need to survive.

UNITE HERE Local 355, the labor union that represents hotel workers in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, provides insight, saying the way to combat the crisis is to raise the standard for hotel workers by raising wages to $20 an hour and ending the exploitation of temporary workers.

Families are budgeting out every cent and barely able to get through the month. Hotel housekeepers are majority immigrant women of color who work extremely hard to make ends meet and support their families. The May 9^th march will bring housekeepers from different hotels together demanding a higher standard.  The cost of transportation, child care, housing, and basic necessities have made it incredibly difficult for current hotel workers to live and almost impossible for the hotel industry to attract new workers.

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UNITE HERE Local 355 is the hospitality workers’ union in South Florida, representing 7,000 workers in hotels, airports, restaurant, stadiums, and casinos. Ninety-eight percent of its members were laid off at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and fifty percent remain out of work today.