UNION, LAWMAKERS RALLY FOR FEDERAL LABOR REFORMS.

Byline: EUGENE TONG 

Staff Writer

GLENDALE -- Local Congress members and labor leaders rallied Thursday in support of proposed reforms to federal labor laws just outside a hotel where a unionization drive has been stymied for several years.

The rally outside the Glendale Hilton by the county Federation of Labor touted HR 800 -- the Employee Free Choice Act introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this month and slated for a vote next week.

Proponents of the bill said it would streamline the certification of unions by the National Labor Relations Board, which involves a secret ballot election they say is now rife with employer meddling.

"What we're asking for is just the chance to even the playing field," said Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Los Angeles.

The proposed bill would force management to recognize a union if a majority of workers sign up. It also requires employers to begin talks with prospective unions within 10 days of being notified of a union's certification, and steps up the involvement of federal mediation and arbitration during negotiation.

The bill also would strengthen enforcement and penalties against employers for unfair labor practices -- including worker intimidation and dismissal -- during organizing drives.

"The fines are so small, they consider it part of the regular cost of doing business," said Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Lakewood and member of the Committee on Education and Labor.

Meanwhile, the local Hilton remains a site of labor contention, with Unite Here Local 11 trying to unionize the hotel's 180 housekeepers, valets, restaurants workers and others for the past two years.

Officials at the hotel owned by Eagle Hospitality of Covington, Ky., say they are neutral on the organizing drive.

"The hotel recognizes that Unite Here has the federal right to go about their process," said Tim Wildey, the hotel's sales and marketing director. "We recognize the team members under federal law have the right and free choice to make the decision."

But Angie Reid, a bartender at the hotel for seven years, said that's not how her employer acts, with management insisting to resolve the

union drive with an election.

"When we first went public, extra security guards were watching us, our bags were being checked, ... we have anti-union letters stapled to our paychecks," she said. "We should not be harassed for wanting a better life."

Hotel management was accused last year of intimidating employees and interfering with the campaign. It settled after the NLRB filed a complaint.

While management does prefer an election, Wildey said they are not trying to sway anyone's decision.

"What we've done is communicate to them that they need to get all the facts about the union before they make their decisions," he said.

Union leaders have urged a boycott, which city Councilman Frank Quintero supports.

"They don't want the business to go under," Becerra said. "If there's no work, there's no paycheck. Angie wants to make the Hilton hotel here more profitable. Let her do it while she gets a decent wage."

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

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