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LA Hotel Workers Reach Deal With Biltmore Hotel After Months of Striking
Biltmore Los Angeles workers celebrate a tentative deal reached with the hotel to end their strike on Friday.
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Unite Here Local 11
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After months of intermittent strikes at dozens of hotels across L.A., workers at the historic Biltmore Los Angeles in downtown have come to a tentative agreement.
Unite Here Local 11, the union representing hotel workers, did not offer details of the deal, but said it won "unprecedented wage increases" to help keep up with the cost of living, among other gains.
"Its just good to know that there's peace at our hotel again and that we're getting a fair deal," said Erik Blood, who has worked at the Biltmore as a bartender for more than six years.
Blood added that the Biltmore workers went on strike three times since June before securing a tentative agreement.
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The Biltmore is the second hotel to settle with the labor union. The Westin Bonaventure came to an agreement with its workers earlier this summer.
In a statement, Biltmore General Manager Jimmy Wu said he was pleased to have reached an agreement.
Now, workers at the Biltmore need to vote to ratify the agreement.
The news comes as workers are walking picket lines at the Beverly Hilton, Fairmont Century Plaza and Waldorf Astoria in Los Angeles, according to a Unite Here representative. Other locations in Santa Monica saw walk outs earlier this week.
Workers at dozens of hotels in Los Angeles and across Southern California have been working on expired contracts since July. The union has been intermittently striking at different hotel locations.
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