March for Woodfin Hotel Workers’ Back Wages
Monday, Nov. 17 at 5 pm
Join the march from the Woodfin Hotel at 5800 Shellmound, Emeryville to Emeryville City Hall (1333 Park St., Emeryville).
by Reem Assil
It’s been close to three years since Woodfin owner Sam Hardage refused to pay about $200,000 in back wages to dozens of hotel housekeepers. Meanwhile, Hardage’s business has spent about twice that on largely unsuccessful lawsuits trying to throw out Emeryville’s living wage law. Next week, on Mon, Nov 17, the latest chapter in this struggle opens with a hearing at the Emeryville City Council and a 300-person march called “Let justice roll down.”
One worker, Lorena, had this to say about conditions before the living wage and fair workload law went into effect: “Sometimes I couldn’t even stop to get a glass of water. I would get home with my feet very swollen, my hands swollen, and with a headache. When we couldn’t finish, they made us punch out after 8 hours and told us to finish. I even started wondering if we were living in times of slavery.”
Go to for the http://www.workingeastbay.org/woodfinblog for the full story.
Please join the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE) on Monday, November 17th at 5 PM at the Woodfin Suites Hotel (5800 Shellmound, Emeryville) for a march from the hotel to Emeryville City Council before the hearing. For more information or to RSVP, visit www.workingeastbay.org/Woodfin_hearing.
Reem Assil is a community organizer for EBASE. Reem is inspired by both her love for community and her understanding of the importance of building power in the labor movement. Her formative experience with coalition building and community organizing comes out of organizing in the Arab American community, in which her heart lies.
(Photo courtesy of EBASE, www.workingeastbay.org)
Didn’t the Woodfin win that case?
No, the State Supreme Court judge upheld Measure C as constitutional back in April and ruled that the City had the right to enforce the law. The City issued re-issued a permit to the Woodfin conditional on the payment of the new backwages, but last September the Woodfin appealed it yet again…
Are other hotels in Emeryville obeying the law or is it just Woodfin?
all the other hotels complied– the Woodfin refused to comply in the first year
I hope they have a parade permit or this thing will be shut down. Still, I can’t believe this big hotel corporation won’t pay it’s workers! Crazy!
This is funny. The court ruled that these so-called back wages were “invalid”.
Read your court documents better.
No, the court didn’t rule the backwages invalid, just that they needed to be recalculated. Which they have been, changing the total of the backwages by about $20K. But the Woodfin still owes $200K+, and their arguments against the constitutionality of Measure C were found to be lacking.
Here is more media coverage of the Woodfin march:
http://www.ktvu.com/news/18004248/detail.html
I promise to fight one day longer than the Woodfin if that’s what it’s going to take!!
Nov 20 “This is funny”:
I’m glad to see the right wing in Emeryville is reading the Secret News!