September 11, 2018
Day 5: Chicago Hotel Strike Continues
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A strike targeting 25 downtown Chicago hotels is entering a fifth day as housekeepers, cooks and others remain off the job.
The Chicago Tribune reported Monday, the strike's fourth day, that some hotels scrambled to clean rooms and check in guests.
A main demand of members of the hotel workers' union, Unite Here Local 1, is for year-round health insurance for employees laid off in slower months.
One visitor from Dallas, Kristian Hulgard, said it took eight hours to check into Palmer House Hilton. The hotel offered free drinks as compensation. He said at $300 a night you'd expect things to go smoothly, but that the inconvenience wasn't "a big deal."
A Hyatt Regency Chicago statement last week said it's had "strong" union relations and was negotiating in good faith.
