Prince George, B.C., Coast Hotel workers protest lockout threat

Coast Hotel workers, represented by Unite Here, Local 40, and their labour allies held a demonstration on Dec. 11 at the Coast Inn of the North in Prince George, B.C., against the employer’s lockout threat.

On Dec. 11, Coast Hotels issued a 72-hour lockout notice at Coast Inn of the North, Coast Bastion in Nanaimo and Coast Victoria Harbourside, all in B.C. The move could affect more than 250 workers and their families in three cities as they head into the holiday season, said the union.

This escalating labour dispute comes as B.C.’s hotel industry has enjoyed record revenues in recent years. For months, Coast Hotels has failed to address workers’ demands for livable wage increases, protection from high workloads, an increased pension contribution and an end to claw backs of worker’s tips, said Unite Here.

“Our workload is so heavy that I take pain killers first thing in the morning just to work. I’m outraged that the company is threatening to lock us out right before Christmas,” said Susan Bishop, housekeeper at Coast Inn of the North.

Independent of the lockout notice, Laird Cronk, the new president of the B.C. Federation of Labour (BCFED), called for mediation between Unite Here, Local 40 and Coast Hotels after workers at Nanaimo’s Coast Bastion held a one-day strike on Dec. 8, said the union.