February 26th, 2026: Hotel workers at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Albany Downtown unanimously ratified their union contract, the GRIWA! The victory was an emotional moment for the workers – who stood strong for three years while our union fought for a contract that secured the wages and benefits that they deserved.
“I never lost faith in the union. This agreement is why.”
– JOSEPH CHESTNUT, Housekeeping Delegate at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Albany Downtown
“The union fought to win us a livable wage. Because of this contract, a weight has been lifted off of me,” said Laundry Attendant Tin Tin Shwe, who has worked at the hotel for 11 years.
Earlier this year, union delegates across the Capital District and Westchester completed the Delegate Training Program. Throughout the course, the delegates took a deep dive into the GRIWA contract language. “This outstanding group of delegates shows up every day to represent their coworkers and keep our union strong,” said HTC President Rich Maroko. “Through the Delegate Training Program, you have become even tougher, even smarter, and even better at enforcing your union contract. Congratulations!”
Following a number of contentious and public fights at the bargaining table and ongoing efforts to organize new hotels and casinos in the Capital District, our union celebrates 100% union density in downtown Albany!
The Hotel Voice spoke to union members across Albany about how the union has impacted their lives.
“I think my life would be totally different if I didn't have the union. We have fair wages so that we can continue to live as the cost of living and inflation goes up. We have job security, so that we can't be fired at-will, and great benefits. I have two daughters at home, a 3-year old and a 1-year old, so the paid time off we get under the contract is really important to me.”
“Being a delegate comes from the heart.”
“I like to be someone's voice when they don't have one. I've learned so much by being a delegate. It has made me a better person – knowing I can help save someone's job. And Nancy and Tyrone are always a phone call away.”
“The union has changed my life: the hours I have, the job security, the benefits, the healthcare. I have two sons, 19 and 10 years old, so this has all made such a difference in my life.
If we didn't have the union, I'd worry. Management would treat us however they want to.
We get treated with respect because of the union. We get unconditional support from our union representatives. This is why so many of us have been working here for 15 years.”
“I've worked at the Hilton Albany for over 30 years – since 1995 – and been a delegate since we joined the union. It's not easy, but it's important for me to make sure my coworkers are treated fairly.
In 2017, management tried to gut our contract, but we didn't back down. We went on strike from September – January. I would take my granddaughter to the picket line with me in her stroller. It was a long fight, but we felt powerful. We fought all the way through.
When we won, I felt like we were on top of the world.”
March 27th, 2026: The club employees at the Harmonie Club, the second oldest private club in New York City, ratified their new contract.
The agreement secures higher pay, protects health and retirement benefits, and wins stronger rights on the job. It provides Harmonie Club employees with access to new benefits, including pre-paid legal. It introduces improved scheduling rights, night shift differential, premium pay for part-time workers, paid time off to vote, and paid parental leave, and it significantly improves other economic benefits.
“I started working at the Harmonie Club in 2004, but I've been part of the union family since the early '90s. My father was a hotel employee, so I've known about the union for most of my life.
We are the first club to sign the first standardized, master contract for clubs – and I can't say how excited I am. Under this contract, anything that happens – anything that could arise – has clear and powerful contract language that protects us.”
– ELY BURGOS, Lifeguard at Harmonie Club
February 12th, 2026: Local 6 members at the Harvard Club ratified a new contract in a united vote: 98% YES! The new contract provides significant wage increases, secures the Club Pension, and protects free healthcare for union members and their families.
“New York is already so expensive. Can you imagine paying $1,000 a month for premiums? Now, we have guaranteed, free healthcare. We can save more money and have a better lifestyle,” said Kevin Sirois, Club Waiter and union member of over 20 years.
“This is the best contract I’ve ever gotten.”
– JOSE ANTONIO, Club Waiter at Harvard Club
May 7th, 2026: Union members at the Penn Club ratified their new contract in a unanimous vote: 100% YES! In addition to large wage increases, the new contract secures free family healthcare, protects the pension, improves paid time off, provides access to new benefit funds, strengthens health and safety provisions, and much more!
“I’ve been working at the Penn Club for 30 years and I’ve never gotten a raise like this! For everyone, ratification day was a very happy day. We worked hard for this day!”
– DENNY YOUNG, Club Cook at the Penn Club
May 6th, 2026: Local 6 members at the Yacht Club have ratified their new union contract: 100% YES! The new contract, which will be in effect through 2030, locks in substantial wage increases, protects free family healthcare, strengthens workplace safety protections – and provides a host of additional rights and improved benefits that will better the lives of union members at the Yacht Club for years to come.
“I’m so excited; the new contract is incredible,” said Luz Estella Salgado, a Housekeeping Attendant at Yacht Club. “It’s going to make a huge difference in my life!”
“The wage increase is very favorable for us, given how expensive everything has become. And keeping our benefits was very important to me, as I still have to take medicine from a surgery I had last year.”
– LEDY VARGAS, Housekeeping Attendant at Yacht Club
“The hotel union is one of the most powerful groups in New York politics. Union President Rich Maroko set the stage for the recent contract win by advocating for legislation, signed last year by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, that increased the maximum amount of unemployment insurance residents could collect 72%, to $869 a week.”
“The eight-year contract agreement between the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council – representing 27,000 hotel workers – and the Hotel Association of New York City, which represents 250 hotels, establishes 50% wage raises along with free family healthcare, increased pension contributions, new benefit funds and expanded rights at work, union officials said.”
“A strike threat timed to the World Cup gave hotel workers maximum leverage. Every hotel union negotiator in other major cities will see this deal the new national labor benchmark”
“HTC President Rich Maroko called the deal 'an extraordinary victory for hotel workers,' and said it includes the largest wage increases in the union’s 100-year history.
'This agreement is not just a win for HTC members, but a win that raises the standards for working people everywhere,' he said in a statement.”
“The contract also continues covering healthcare costs for members and their families through an increase in employer contributions to the union’s health benefits fund by 3 percentage points, from 27.25% to 30.35% of payroll, which the union says totals nearly $65 million per year...”
“Additionally, employers will increase pension contributions by half a percentage point, bringing them up to 12% of payroll effective January 1, 2027, though that was a previously agreed upon increase. The contract also adds a paid holiday, Juneteenth, and requires employers to bargain with the union and provide 120 days notice before introducing new technology or artificial intelligence at their hotels.”
“A union representing 40,000 hotel workers — not auto workers, airline pilots or teachers — has become perhaps the most powerful labor organizations in the United States. How so? The Hotel & Gaming Trades Council (HTC) has championed New York legislation that protected members while weakening their non-unionized competitors, successfully helped several candidates ascend to higher office, and secured generous unemployment benefits for laid-off. workers.”
“We have an exceptionally loyal base of members. That’s where a lot of our bargaining power comes from – a strong and united membership,” HTC President Rich Maroko told Commercial Observer in an interview. “If you look at the amount of time and members who volunteer to support the union, it’s increasing exponentially year after year.”
“The average pay of housekeepers in New York City hotels will increase to more than $100,000 a year as part of a contract settlement between an industry trade group and a powerful union.”
“The agreement between the hotel workers and the industry comes about six weeks before the expiration of the current 14-year contract. For more than a year, union officials had been preparing for a strike in early July, just before the celebration of the 250th birthday of the United States and the final of FIFA’s World Cup tournament at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.”
“Inside the city’s hotels, workers became the tournament’s unofficial ambassadors. They welcomed fans from around the world, fed them after long matchdays and guided them through an unfamiliar city as New York briefly transformed into a global soccer capital. In lobbies, kitchens and guest rooms, they absorbed the rhythms of the World Cup, sharing in the joy of victory and offering quiet comfort after defeat.”
“Bustillo was one of 24 hotel employees from New York and New Jersey, represented by the Hotel & Gaming Trades Council, AFL-CIO, chosen for their volunteer work to attend a match at MetLife Stadium. The union’s initiative is part of a broader effort by New York and New Jersey officials to make World Cup tickets available to residents who might otherwise be priced out. Throughout the tournament, state and city programs have distributed or reserved tickets for more than 2,500 people across the region.”
“With one upgraded and two new casinos coming soon to New York City, it’s a good time to be leading the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council. Rich Maroko has long pushed for casino expansion in the city, seeing full licenses issued last year.”
