Statement from Wendi Walsh UNITE HERE Florida Political Director re declared victory for Mayor Daniella Levine Cava

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—Tuesday, November 3, 2020

Contact: MJ Leira, 917-565-7697, [email protected]

“Since August we’ve pushed to get out the vote for Mayor-Elect Daniella Levine Cava, with more than 160 canvassers going door to door every day and more than 800,000 pieces of literature sent out to support her campaign. Our team dedicated over 36,315 hours to secure her seat as Mayor. We are proud to have a mayor who is genuinely committed to our members and to working people in our communities. Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava has always stood by our side. She’s stood with hospitality workers when we needed her most and we’re going to be there to back her up moving forward. She’s fought for a living wage, for responsible development in Miami-Dade County, and for the future recovery of the hospitality industry. With Daniella as Mayor, we have a leader who understands us, sees us, and who we will work with as a real partner.”

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UNITE HERE Florida is a labor union that represents over 34,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida. At the peak of the pandemic, over 98% of UNITE HERE members were unemployed, and 75% are still out of work today. UNITE HERE’s Take Back 2020 campaign is the largest canvassing operation in the state of Florida.

UNITE HERE hospitality workers close Election Day having knocked on over 450,000 doors in Florida  

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—Tuesday, November 3, 2020

Contact: MJ Leira, 917-565-7697, [email protected]

Union members, many unemployed due to COVID-19, form largest
door-to-door canvass operation in battleground state of Florida.  

 

FLORIDA—Over 300 hotel housekeepers, dishwashers, cooks, and casino attendants knocked on over 450,000 doors statewide closing this Election Day, doing their part to win the election for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. In Florida, UNITE HERE hospitality workers—primarily Black and Latinx workers whose jobs and families have been hit particularly hard by COVID-19—got out on the doors first and stayed out longest to get out the vote for the Democratic nominees. They’ve worked to make the critical difference in Florida where, in 2016, Donald Trump won by only 1% and 500,000 registered democrats did not vote.

 

UNITE HERE Florida has been on the doors since August and on the phones since June, persuading voters to support Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, as well as state and local candidates. They’ve dialed more than 6,000,000 phone numbers, knocked over 450,000 doors, and had 260,000 conversations with voters. We persuaded more than 85,000 people who had not voted in 2016 to make a plan to vote for Joe Biden this year. Over 44,000 of them had already voted as of Sunday, during Early Vote or Vote by Mail.  We spent all day today talking to the rest of them, turning them out on Election Day. These numbers reflect UNITE HERE as the largest canvassing operation in the state of Florida.

 

The workers are members of UNITE HERE, the hospitality workers’ union, which organized the largest union door-to-door canvassing operation in the U.S. in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic, which at its peak put 98% of the union’s members in Walt Disney World, the Fontainebleau Miami Beach and the Diplomat Beach Resort, Florida’s airports, restaurants, and casinos out of work. As part of UNITE HERE’s Take Back 2020, union members have canvassed door-to-door for months in Miami-Dade, Broward, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, and Polk counties.

 

The hospitality industry and its workers define Florida. During these last many months, our members have laid the foundation of their political power, which will only get bigger and stronger moving forward. “Regardless of tonight’s results, nobody should ever underestimate the power of UNITE HERE’s members in Florida. Our members may be in the background at work, but they are organized, focus, trained, and powerful—and they’re paying attention. No doubt, 2020 has been a rough year for our members, and they’ve watched to see who had their backs.  I am confident that the results of tonight’s elections will show that if you stand with our members, they’ll stand with you,” said Wendi Walsh, UNITE HERE Florida Political Director

 

UNITE HERE was the first group in Florida to begin door-to-door canvassing in 2020, a year in which many groups initially abandoned in-person canvassing—a cornerstone of GOTV electoral work—in the face of the global pandemic.

 

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UNITE HERE Florida is a labor union that represents over 34,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida. At the peak of the pandemic, over 98% of UNITE HERE members were unemployed, and 75% are still out of work today. UNITE HERE’s Take Back 2020 campaign is the largest canvassing operation in the state of Florida, with more than 300 full-time canvassers and hundreds more volunteers.

 

UNITE HERE Florida, States Largest Canvassing Organization, Gains Momentum in Final Stretch of 2020 Elections

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—Monday, October 26, 2020

Contact: MJ Leira, [email protected], (917) 565-7697

 

FLORIDA—In the past weeks, UNITE HERE Florida has grown in efforts to mobilize voters in South and Central Florida with over 1,000 laid off hospitality workers now committed to get out the vote for Joe Biden.

 

In 2016, Donald Trump won Florida by a margin of just 1%, while half a million Democrats in South and Central Florida did not vote. Now, hospitality workers are Taking Back their power to ensure this does not happen again. UNITE HERE Florida has committed millions of dollars in resources and hundreds of thousands of staff and volunteer hours to move voters in counties where union members live and work. Members of UNITE HERE Florida continue knocking on doors and making phone calls in order to make up that critical 1% difference and inspire many more Floridians to go to the polls to elect Joe Biden.

 

“Our union is committed to win in Florida and to restore the livelihoods of the countless families that have been devastated during this pandemic due to Donald Trump’s failed leadership,” said Wendi Walsh, UNITE HERE Florida Political Director.

 

Canvassers are, by majority, Black and Latinx women, who live and work in target communities. They are among 1,000 laid off hospitality workers from places such as Walt Disney World, the Fontainebleau Miami Beach, and The Diplomat Beach Resort who are committing their time to defeat Trump.

 

UNITE HERE Florida has created and follows a comprehensive “contactless door-to-door canvassing” model, including mandatory use of PPE and adherence to social distancing guidelines. By strictly following this model, it is possible to safely conduct door-to-door canvassing, which facilitates the direct conversations proven to be more effective at turning out low propensity voters and in helping all voters understand how to cast their ballots. Workers are available for interviews on the ground while canvassing.

 

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UNITE HERE Florida is a labor union that represents over 34,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida. At the peak of the pandemic, over 98% of UNITE HERE members were unemployed, and 75% are still out of work today. UNITE HERE’s Take Back 2020 campaign is the largest canvassing operation in the state of Florida, with more than 300 full-time canvassers and hundreds more volunteers.

UNITE HERE Florida political canvassing operations kick-off in Central and South Florida

Unions host multi-city press conference, PPE distribution caravan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—Tuesday, October 6, 2020

Contact: MJ Leira, [email protected]

 

FLORIDA—UNITE HERE Florida kicked-off its effort to mobilize voters in South and Central Florida with a multi-city virtual press conference followed by PPE distribution caravans in both Central and South Florida. At the caravans, canvassers received PPE including masks and gloves, black “Take Back 2020” shirts and face masks.

 

Watch full press conference here. Download photos here.

 

In 2016, Donald Trump won Florida by a margin of just 1%, while half a million Democrats in South and Central Florida did not vote. Now, as hospitality workers in Florida continue to experience the wrath of the COVID-19 pandemic, UNITE HERE Florida is putting significant resources to move voters in counties where union members live and work, in order to make up that critical 1% difference and inspire many more Floridians to go to the polls to elect Joe Biden. “Our union is seriously investing in Florida like we’ve never done before. We’re making a vote-by-mail strategy that no one else is doing. We’ve done this in Nevada – we fought, and we won. We have the most committed and passionate canvassers who are fighting for their families,” said Wendi Walsh, UNITE HERE Florida Political Director.

 

Canvassers are, by majority, Black and Brown women, who live and work target communities in Miami-Dade, Broward, Osceola, Orange, Seminole, and Polk counties. They are among 500 laid-off hospitality workers who are committing their time to this election by canvassing or  serving as “poll stewards”: volunteers who will conduct voter outreach via phone and text message and who will also protect voters at the polls during early voting and on Election Day.

 

UNITE HERE Florida has created and follows a comprehensive “contactless door-to-door canvassing” model, which includes a set of rules that go above and beyond what is required by health authorities in Florida and that has been implemented successfully in UNITE HERE’s ground operations in both Arizona and Nevada. These include mandatory use of PPE including masks and gloves and adherence to social distancing guidelines. By strictly following this model, it is possible to safely conduct door-to-door canvassing, which facilitates the direct conversations proven to be more effective at turning out low propensity voters and in helping all voters understand how to cast their ballots.

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 UNITE HERE Florida is comprised of three member unions: UNITE HERE Local 355 Miami, UNITE HERE Local 362 Orlando, and UNITE HERE Local 737 Orlando. Together they represent over 34,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida. 

UNITE HERE Florida to kick-off political canvassing operations in Central and South Florida with multi-city press conference, PPE distribution caravan

MEDIA ADVISORY FOR: Tuesday, October 6, 2020

Contact: MJ Leira, [email protected], (917) 565-7697

WHO: 

  • Wendi Walsh, UNITE HERE Florida Political Director and Secretary-Treasurer of UNITE HERE Local 355
  • Jeremy Haicken, UNITE HERE Local 737 President
  • 200 UNITE HERE Florida political canvassers.

 

WHEN: Tuesday, October 6, 2020 at 9am and 11am

 

WHAT: UNITE HERE Florida virtual press conference to kick-off political canvassing efforts in South and Central Florida. Wendi Walsh and Jeremy Haicken will speak with political canvassers ahead of them going out into Miami-Dade, Broward, Osceola, Orange, Seminole, and Polk neighborhoods to mobilize voters. Press conference will be followed by a PPE distribution caravan in both Central and South Florida where canvassers receiving their PPE, black Take Back 2020 shirts and face masks will be available to interview.

 

 WHERE: Media RSVP https://forms.gle/2o3Rc2mvcudDK7sFA 9:00am zoom

Miami:871 NW 167 Street Miami Gardens, FL 33169 11:00am

Orlando:  1255 La Quinta Driva, Suite 214 Orlando, FL 32809 11:00am

 

WHY: Hospitality workers in Florida continue to experience the wrath of the COVID-19 pandemic. UNITE HERE is leading a statewide effort to mobilize voters. In 2016, Trump won Florida by a margin of just 1%, while half a million Democrats in South and Central Florida did not vote.  UNITE HERE Florida is using all of our resources to move voters in counties where our members live and work, in order to make up that critical 1% difference, and inspire many more voters to go to the polls to elect Joe Biden.

Over 500 laid off hospitality workers from Walt Disney World and Orlando International Airport to the Fontainebleau Miami Beach, the Diplomat Beach Resort, Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport are taking back their power in this election. Canvassers are, by majority, Black and Brown women, who live and work in the communities the union is targeting.

UNITE HERE Florida has created and follows a comprehensive “contactless door-to-door canvassing” model, which includes a set of rules that go above and beyond what is required by health authorities in Florida. These include mandatory use of PPE including masks and gloves and adherence to social distancing guidelines. By strictly following this model, we can safely conduct door-to-door canvassing, which facilitates the direct conversations proven to be more effective at turning out low propensity voters and helping all voters understand how to cast their ballots.

 

ABOUT UNITE HERE Florida:

UNITE HERE Florida is a labor union that represents over 34,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida. Over 200 hospitality workers have come out on a full-time Leave of Absence, an additional 300 statewide serve as volunteer “poll stewards” who conduct voter outreach via phone and text message and will also protect voters at the polls during early voting and on Election Day.

Laid Off Hospitality Workers Got Out the Vote for Florida’s Primary Elections

Miami, FL— In March, almost all of the 33,000 hospitality workers represented by UNITE HERE Florida were laid off due to COVID-19.  Most remain laid off five months later.  Over these months, Florida’s hourly workers were largely abandoned by their elected leaders, left struggling to access unemployment benefits and health insurance, and fearing for their lives as a few reentered the workplace.

In response, laid off hospitality workers have turned their attention to electoral politics to take back their power. UNITE HERE Florida housekeepers, cooks, servers, and dishwashers put in thousands of hours volunteering to turn out the vote. Denia Fernandez, cashier at Miami International Airport, said: “The County Commission, in the middle of a health crisis, cancelled proposal 11A11, rejecting paid sick days. This showed us that the Commissioners need to understand the power of our vote.”  Hear more from Denia here.

Yolette Lareus added, “I’ve been working as a cook at Calder Casino for 27 years. I’ve seen how Oliver Gilbert has fought for us to keep our jobs. On my own, I’ve raised my two 11 and 13-year-old daughters who need a prosperous future. Voting is the only way we can fix this situation. The same way Mayor Gilbert helped me as Mayor of Miami Gardens I know he’ll be able to do more in the County Commission of Miami-Dade.”

Workers supported candidates for the County Commission who have supported them. “Our members know that Commissioner Eileen Higgins passed a $3 million-dollar legislation that will provide financial relief to furloughed hotel workers. We backed Mayor Oliver Gilbert because he stood up for worker safety protections during this pandemic. Our members will never forget that Commissioner Keon Hardemon donated food vouchers to feed their families in their time of need. People are loyal to those who are loyal to them when it mattered most,” said Wendi Walsh, UNITE HERE Florida Political Director.

All three candidates supported by UNITE HERE Florida for Miami-Dade County Commission achieved solid victories. Commissioners Eileen Higgins and Keon Hardemon both came in first in their districts and will be on the ballot for November runoffs. In District 1 alone, hospitality workers had 6,989 phone conversations, dialed 259,244 phone numbers, visited 8,426 doors, and texted with tens of thousands more voters to deliver a victory for Oliver Gilbert.

For laid off hospitality workers, the primary was just the beginning.  UNITE HERE Florida members are signing up to volunteer in unprecedented numbers heading into November to vote out Donald Trump.

Press Contact: Wendi Walsh, [email protected]

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UNITE HERE Florida is a labor union that represents over 33,000 workers in the hotel, casino, food service, and airport industries in Central and South Florida.