Hotel worker Auro Rodriguez: ‘Mayor Taveras, we are just like your mother’


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DSC_8319Renaissance Hotel room cleaner Auro Rodriguez says she once sat down across from Mayor Taveras and that he told her the story of his hard-working mother, who put him through school and college with her hard work in low paying jobs. He promised, says Rodriguez, that he would not forget these workers…

So the question, I suppose, is where was Mayor Angel Taveras on Thursday night, when dozens of working women showed up to a City Council Ordinance Committee meeting that was to discuss the $15 an hour hotel worker minimum wage ordinance?

Why is Auro Rodriguez talking to my camera outside the locked door of the Mayor’s office, instead of to the Mayor or to the City Council?

The first video is translated into English, the second is in the original Spanish.

Watch video of Santa Brito speaking to Mayor Taveras and the Providence City Council, via video here.

Elorza, Smiley speak out on cancelled City Hall meeting


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Abandoned at City Hall

Thursday night’s last minute cancellation of the Providence City Council’s Ordinance Committee remains unexplained. Both the mayor’s office and members of the city council remain silent about the cancellation that left more than a hundred hotel workers and supporters, mostly women and working mothers, to arrive at an empty and unresponsive City Hall.

Two Democratic primary mayoral candidates did respond to my request for a comment on the cancellation, however. While not going so far as to support the $15 an hour minimum wage ordinance the hotel workers have brought before the City Council, the two candidates did champion the idea of open government and were critical of the decision to cancel the meeting without taking into account the sacrifices made by the workers to attend.

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Jorge Elorza

“This cancellation was an unnecessary and avoidable problem for those who planned on attending,” said Elorza, “As I made clear in my proposal on Revitalizing and Revamping City Hall, I believe that creating a friendly, customer service oriented atmosphere in City Hall is vital to maintaining the healthy functions of our government.”

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Brett Smiley

Josh Block, Communications Director for the Smiley campaign, relayed the following statement to the hotel workers, “Brett shares your frustrations. He believes that, whatever decision is reached, it must be done in an open and transparent process. Brett is disappointed in the City Council leadership for playing politics and canceling the vote at the 11th hour without notifying the many hardworking men and women who made significant sacrifices and arrangements in order to show up and make sure their voices were heard.”

It is the right of every American that government be open and accessible. One might hope that the hotel workers be someday given an explanation and apology.

Santa Brito to Mayor Taveras: ‘Please support the working women of Providence’


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Santa Brito and child

After last Thursday night’s Providence City Council Ordinance Committee meeting in which the proposal to establish a $15 an hour living wage for hotel workers was to be discussed and voted on was cancelled, many of the women and men who made the effort to engage with their government were abandoned in City Hall with no way to speak to their government.

As Jenny Norris, MSW, said to me, “There are many, many, many, many, many barriers that prevent people from participating in government and policy discussions. What a shame it is when people actively overcome a lot those barriers only to be blindsided by a cancellation…”

Still, the women wanted to speak out, to directly address both the City Council and Mayor Angel Taveras. My camera caught them outside the Mayor’s locked office, and over the next few days I’ll be releasing their statements.

First up is Santa Brito. Santa has been a fierce advocate for hotel worker’s rights. She was fired from the hotel, possibly for her unionization efforts, shortly after giving birth to her child. The first video is translated into English, the second video is in the original Spanish.

 

Mayor Taveras and PVD City Council abandon working mothers


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DSC_8287Upon being elected Mayor of Providence in 2010, Angel Taveras, “speaking at the state Democratic Party gathering at the Biltmore, thanked his mother, Amparo ‘Milagro’ Ovalles, a Dominican immigrant who had raised him and his two immediate siblings largely on her own while working at local factories.”

Speaking of his mother, Taveras said, “Her example taught me that, through hard work and perseverance, anything is possible, and most importantly, that there are no insurmountable challenges,” adding in yet another interview, “I feel really blessed in many, many ways. My mother sacrificed a lot, and emphasized education so that my sister and I can live the American Dream.”

DSC_8378Everyone in Providence has heard the story of Mayor Taveras. He grew up poor, supported by his mother, a product of the Providence public school system. he later graduated Harvard and Georgetown University, to become the first Hispanic mayor of Providence at the age of forty. He routinely gives much of the credit for his success to his mother.

Even as recently as Tuesday night Taveras was playing this familiar tune. “Taveras talked of growing up poor in Providence — how his mother had his Easter Sunday suit put on layaway at Ann & Hope. ‘I tell you that,’ he said, because ‘you want to know who your governor is going to stand with when things get tough … working families.’”

DSC_8231Why is it then, when given a chance to actually stand with working families, Taveras skulked away and left them standing alone?

Last night, nearly one hundred hard working women, many of them supporting children in circumstances not too different from those endured by the Mayor’s mother, were left wondering why the Mayor and the City Council had abandoned them. Last night was supposed to be a meeting of the Providence Ordinance Committee to discuss the proposed $15 minimum wage for hotel workers. Working women secured childcare or brought their kids with them. They skipped meals, skipped overtime and traveled to the City Hall on foot, on buses or in carpools, only to find out that the Ordinance Committee meeting had been abruptly cancelled.

DSC_8182Those City Councillors who would face their constituents in the lobby of the City Hall seemed at a loss to explain the cancellation. Mayor Taveras had indicated to Channel 12 news that he wanted the measure held for further study, but as far as I can tell, the Mayor does not have the power or authority to cancel City Council meetings, though obviously he can exert enormous pressure if he has to. Rumors were flying that Committee Chair, Councillor Seth Yurdin, was being lobbied by hotel and/or mayoral interests, or that he had broken his foot in a fortuitous (for Mayor Taveras and the hotel owners) accident.

DSC_8191With memories of Angel Taveras’s biography in my mind, I couldn’t help but see in the bored faces of the children present in the halls of Providence City Hall the potential for them to be the Mayor of Providence themselves a few decades hence. I wondered what their story would be, and if they would remember Mayor Taveras as the kind of politician who stuck up for them when they were in need, or sold them out for the chance to be governor.

DSC_8175The parents of these children, 80% of whom are women and who all work exceedingly hard at their jobs, are being abused right now with long hours, low pay and crushing poverty. They and their children suffer the effects of economic uncertainty and the never ending stress of making ends meet. Just the act of agitating for better working conditions seems to have cost many of them their jobs.

It is within the power of Mayor Angel Taveras and Providence City Council members like Seth Yurdin to improve the lives of these women and lift them out of poverty, but they are avoiding their duty and appeasing monied interests by using shady tricks and delaying tactics rather than holding a straight up vote. This kind of back room dealing, where secret lobbying, money and political designs count for more than the efforts of organized citizens agitating for justice is shameful.

This measure deserves a straight up vote, and that vote needed to happen yesterday.

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Councillor Carmen Castillo confronts Councillor Sam Zurier
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Councillors Wilbur Jennings Jr and Carmen Castillo
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Councillor Kevin Jackson supports the measure

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Hotel workers, activists ask PVD for $15 minimum wage


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Fight for 15 007Reading Rhode Island’s paper of record this morning about the Providence City Council meeting where public testimony was taken on a proposal to raise the minimum wage for hotel workers to $15 would certainly give the false impression that “Dozens of speakers testified before the panel, both for and against the plan.” In truth, 22 people testified for the proposal, and only five people testified against it. Over 200 supporters rallied at City Hall. The measure is overwhelmingly popular, but the ProJo decided to bury the item on the bottom of page five.

That’s too bad, because the successful passage of this proposal would put Providence at the forefront of the battle for a fair and equitable living wage for all people, and the ProJo will be playing catch up when the national media turns its attention here. $15 an hour will change the lives of Providence hotel workers, who barely survive on meager paychecks and government assistance. It will change the lives of their children, opening up opportunities for better education, health care and child care. It will expand local businesses as the new money put into the hands of local workers will be spent locally. It will allow Providence workers the ability to afford to live in Providence.

This is a game changer, and the Providence City Council would show real wisdom in passing this. Establishing this city as a place where workers are treated well and not exploited will be an economic draw, not a detriment. This is an issue of basic human compassion: Nobody should work so hard and make so little. Good people realize this, and want to support the businesses and communities that embody these values.

Those speaking for the hotels spun the same old gloom and doom prognoses concerning higher room rates, loss of competitive pricing, and loss of profits. This from multi-billion dollar corporations that operate hotels all over the world, including places with minimum wages that are already $15 or higher. After forecasting certain doom, one hotel advocate asked that the proposal be put on hold until a study could be completed, a tactic meant to delay, not enlighten. If the study concludes $15 would be beneficial, the hotels will dispute the findings. If the study shows $15 detrimental, the hotels will claim vindication. In the effort to defeat this measure, the hotel and business community spokemen (and they were all men) stopped just short of suggesting biblical plagues would result.

Speakers in favor of the proposal include Krystle Martin and Adrienne Jones, single mothers who were fired from their jobs shortly after they began agitating for fair wages and a union. Both were previously profiled on RI Future.

After the testimony last night the proposal will be voted on in committee next Thursday, and if it passes out of committee, it will be presented to the Providence City Council the following Thursday. Supporters are hoping for at least ten votes on the City Council, to thwart a possible veto by Mayor Angel Taveras. Supporters were holding signs reading “Angel Don’t Veto Working Women” to get ahead of this possibility. One would think that a man who wants to be governor would not consider voting against hard working hotel workers, 80% of whom are women, but this is an election year, so we can only hope that the Mayor will do the right thing and sign this bill into law upon passage.

Below you can see photos from the event, and pictures of all twenty-two speakers.

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Here are photos and video of all 22 people who spoke in favor of the proposal. Not all of them were hotel workers. Business, labor and community leaders and members were represented.

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For “balance,” here’s the five rich white guys who spoke against the proposal:

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PVD City Council considers hotel minimum wage bill tonight


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Hotel Workers Providence City Hall 012As the Procaccianti Group moves ahead with plans for a new hotel in downtown Providence, employees at another one of its downtown hotels will take their fight for fair wages to the City Council tonight. Employees and activists are requesting the Council pass a $15 an hour minimum wage ordinance for local hotel workers.

The Providence City Council will hold a public hearing to consider the idea today at 6:00 pm.

“I hope the Providence City Council does what is best for the average working mother like me and passes this ordinance,” said Santa Brito, a housekeeper at the Renaissance Providence hotel. “As elections come around, it’s a perfect opportunity to see who’s in the pocket of big business and who actually stands with regular working people of Providence, people from the neighborhoods, people who vote and who they are supposed to represent.”

Hotel employees at two Procaccianti Group-owned Providence hotels – the Renaissance and the Hilton – have been fighting to organize a union for years. The effort gained global attention in 2011, when local brass band What Cheer Brigade played backup to Joey DeFrancesco quitting his job at the Hilton. This year the employee strife has moved to the Renaissance, where activists say two employees have been fired for publicly protesting for higher wages.

Watch what Providence City Councilors are saying about the proposed minimum wage ordinance.


The Procaccianti Group, a property management company that owns and operates hotels globally, receives millions of dollars in tax breaks for the Renaissance hotel. Steve Ahlquist recently reported it lost its TAG accreditation for being LGBTQ friendly in 2013. The company would not comment on the matter. Today, the Providence Journal reports the Procaccianti Group would like to develop a third hotel in downtown.

“As a housekeeper in the Hilton Providence Hotel, I do grueling physical work and make only slightly above $9.00 per hour after eight years of service,” Hilton housekeeper Andrea Hernandez said. “On this paltry wage, I live paycheck to paycheck and can only afford the bare necessities. If I earned just $1.85 more per room cleaned, I could shop at local businesses and invest in my home. The whole city would benefit. There are hundreds of hardworking women like me in Providence hotels who deserve better. We hope the City Council will step up for working women in Providence.”

Hotel workers and their supporters will begin to gather in front of Providence City Hall today at 5:30. See the Facebook invite here.

Providence Renaissance Hotel lost its gay-friendly rating


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Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel

The Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel, which occupies a prime piece of real estate between the Rhode Island State House and the Providence Place Mall, was opened with great fanfare in 2007 by Sage Hospitality Resources. Advertised as being “among the most remarkable hotels in Providence” it is described as featuring “exquisite historic architecture with excellent modern hotel amenities and premium service.” This is a four-star hotel where room rates hover around $500 a night.

In 2008 the Renaissance became TAG (Travel Advocacy Group) Approved. According to the press release issued at the time, “This prestigious designation is awarded to gay-friendly hotels, resorts and destinations across the United States.” In order to be TAG Approved, the hotel must be recognized for its “outstanding commitment to equality,” including:

-Enforcing non-discriminatory policies including sexual orientation
-Treating heterosexual spouses and homosexual domestic partners equally in personnel policies
-Providing diversity and sensitivity training for employees
-Empowering customers and employees to be watchdogs of its gay and lesbian business practices

The Procaccianti Group (TPG), “a Cranston-based hotelier and development company,” acquired the hotel from Sage Hospitality Resources in late 2012/early 2013. By May, 2013 the Renaissance was no longer TAG Approved.

The exact reasons for the Renaissance losing its TAG Approved status are unknown, but I learned that one or more complaints have been filed with the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights (RICHR) due to discriminatory practices against LGBTQ employees. When I requested information on these complaints from RICHR I was informed that under the Access to Public Records Act, investigatory records are not releasable. RICHR could neither confirm nor deny that any complaints were made or that any investigation was being conducted.

TAG has a similar policy of not commenting on the exact reasons for loss of TAG Approved status. When I called TAG I was told only that the Hotel lost its TAG Approved status in May, 2013.

Reading the TAG Approved Accommodations Member Application, only one manner of losing TAG Approved status is discussed. Upon becoming TAG Approved the Renaissance committed itself to the following stipulation:

By becoming a TAG Approved Accommodation, property management acknowledges that both their customers and employees may become “watchdogs” of their business practices. TAG Approved encourages both hotel employees and customers to contact TAG Approved to report if the property does not follow required policies. It is the policy for TAG Approved to follow up on all complaints, and we expect the property to adequately address and resolve the issues presented. If TAG Approved determines that the complaint is not being adequately addressed, or that the property does not meet TAG Approved’s Best Practices qualifications, the property will be terminated as a TAG Approved member and the company must agree to immediately cease using TAG Approved identification on promotional materials.

In other words, it seems that employee and/or guest “watchdogs” made one or more complaints concerning the violation of the non-discrimination policy the hotel agreed to under TAG guidelines. When this was reported, TAG expected the Renaissance “to adequately address and resolve the issues presented.” When the hotel failed to adequately resolve the issue(s) the hotel was “terminated as a TAG Approved member” and the Renaissance was immediately compelled to cease “using TAG Approved identification on promotional materials.”

“We are proud to receive TAG approval because it recognizes our efforts to serve and welcome the gay community,” said Angelo De Peri, general manager of the Renaissance Providence Hotel, in 2008, “We hope this designation inspires any and all travelers to stay at the Renaissance Providence Hotel, where they will find a welcoming and non-discriminatory environment.”

Five years later, even as Rhode Island was celebrating the passage of marriage equality and the positive effects such passage would have on our tourism industry, the Renaissance Providence Hotel, with De Peri still as manager, was quietly dismissed from the program. This is the same De Peri now under fire from hotel workers seeking to unionize at the Renaissance.

The Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel either cannot justify its behavior towards LGBTQ employees and customers or worse, it doesn’t care to. One wonders if the discriminatory actions that remain unaddressed by the hotel are worth the loss of revenue and prestige the TAG Approved label once brought.

Providence hotel workers fight for $15 at City Hall

Hotel Workers Providence City Hall 011Providence hotel workers took to the City Council meeting last night to show support for a $15 an hour minimum wage ordinance for the lodging industry in the Capital City. More than 1,000 people signed a petition to have the Providence City Council consider legislating a higher wage after public protests and unionization efforts ended in three employees of the Hilton Providence losing their jobs.

Below is a video and photo essay of some of the people Providence city councilors will have to answer to if they don’t support the ordinance. The sign in the first picture shows three councilors support the minimum wage, but after the meeting Councilors Aponte and Jennings signed on, bringing the total to five in support. None have declared opposition and 10 are still undecided.





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Providence hotel workers ask City Council for $15 minimum wage


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Photo by Steve Ahlquist.
Photo by Steve Ahlquist.

Providence may be getting a $15 minimum wage ordinance for hotel workers if activists fighting for better working conditions at the Hilton and Renaissance get their way.

Today at 3:30 they are submitting more the more than 1,000 signatures needed to force the City Council to consider such an ordinance.

“We hope the City will not delay in bringing this Ordinance to the City Council so that we can consider the ordinance,” said City Councilor Carmen Castillo in a press release. “From talking to hundreds of people in Providence, this is an incredibly important issue for our city that quickly deserves the City’s attention.”

Providence Mayor Angel Taveras, who is running for governor, has not yet responded to a request for comment on the potential ordinance.

If the city validates the signatures, the Council will then have 70 days to take up the ordinance that would set a $15 minimum wage for hotel workers in Providence. The press release says there are more than 1,000 hotel workers who live in Providence.

“With this new minimum wage, I will be able to shop and support small business in my neighborhood,” said a housekeeper named Santa who works at the Renaissance Hotel. “No one on my block has any disposable income right now, so we suffer just like the business owners in our community.”

Employees and activists have been leading a high profile campaign for better working conditions at the Renaissance and Hilton hotels in Providence. They say they are forced to work in poor conditions for paltry wages while the multinational real estate holding company that owns the two hotels makes huge profits.

“We work very hard for billionaire corporations who pay us incredibly little,” said Yilenny Ferraras, a housekeeper at the Hilton. “If I received just a dollar and change more per room, my whole life and my whole neighborhood would change for the better.”

Since the public protests have begun, at least three activists have been fired, they say, for speaking out about the work conditions and advocating for collective bargaining rights.

Read our full coverage of the Hilton workers here.

 

Krystle Martin: Another single mom union organizer fired by Hilton Providence


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Krystle Martin 01Krystle Martin is the third leader of the unionization effort at the Hilton Providence to lose her job.

Last week Bob Plain ran a piece detailing how two leaders of the unionization effort at the Hilton Providence had lost their jobs. Now that number is three. I previously profiled Adrienne Jones here, and covered Friday’s union action here. This is Krystle Martin’s story.

Martin is funny and optimistic, with an easy smile and a quick wit. She comes from a family with a strong union and military background. Her grandmother was in the Telephone Workers Union and her father was in the Laborers Union. She’s a hard working single mom, part of the blue collar, working class that builds, protects and maintains this country. I seriously doubt that many people reading this would want to switch places with Martin, swapping the challenges of their lives for hers. She lives every day on the edge of extreme poverty, where a missed paycheck or a missed day of work can mean the difference between eating or not eating, sleeping in your home or being homeless.

Martin was first hired to work at the Hilton Providence Starbucks, but after a few weeks she was offered the chance to be a server in Shula’s 347 Grill, the restaurant above the Starbucks. For those unfamiliar with food service, this move offers the potential of a big increase in pay. Though being a barista at Starbucks can pay a few dollars more than minimum wage, working as a server in a nice restaurant can bring in much more money in tips, even though you might make less than $5 an hour without tips. Martin needed this opportunity because she was pregnant, and needed the money.

Instead of working as a server, however, after training Martin was given the task of delivering room service, bussing tables (which requires carrying between 35 and 45 pounds of dishes from the table to the dishwasher in back) and expediting orders. (Expediting is adding the final touches to a meal, such as garnishes, and grouping the meals together to be delivered to the guests.) Needless to say, the tips for these duties were not what Martin expected.

Lifting heavy bussing trays full of dishes is not an optimal job for a woman over six months pregnant, but when Martin objected she says, “I received sarcasm from management when I presented a doctors note that stated I couldn’t lift more than 15 pounds.”

After presenting the note, Martin says was approached by a fellow server holding a bucket of clean dishes.

“Can you hold this for me, Krystle?” asked her coworker.

Martin took the bucket of dishes, not sure exactly what was going on, but she was beginning to suspect.

“That’s fifteen pounds of dishes,” said her coworker, “that’s what we expect you to carry.”

Martin asked for light duty, but was denied. She went into preterm labor twice, at 26 and 34  weeks, but still the hotel would not accommodate her. Customers would stop Martin on the floor of the restaurant and ask her if she was okay being so visibly pregnant and bussing tables. Martin just smiled and shrugged it off. She needed the job and needed the money: complaining to customers was not going to help her keep her job. Keep in mind that these are often long shifts of 12 and 13 hours, and breaks were rare, never mind the fact that they are required by law.

Finally, perhaps reacting to the concerns of customers or perhaps having finally found some sense of decency, management deigned to put Martin on light duty which consisted of hostessing and what Martin calls “light” bussing. Light duty lasted for three shifts, because Martin went into labor 11 days early, and delivered a healthy baby girl.

A single mother, Martin could not afford to miss work. Also, the Hilton told her that she might not have a job if she came back to work in six weeks. So less than 48 hours after leaving the hospital where she gave birth, Martin was back to work at the Hilton Providence Starbucks. Here she ran into new problems.

“Before I gave birth and before I returned to work, I’d stated my intent to breast feed my daughter, and upon my return to work, I immediately stated that I was breast feeding my daughter and would need time to pump milk during my shift.”

Working 12 and 13 hour shifts, Martin never got more than two chances (15 minute breaks) per day to pump her breast milk, and despite the law saying that she should be given a secure and designated area for the purpose, she was forced to pump her breast milk in the restroom of the coffee shop, “so that I wouldn’t be too far away from the store at the time.”

This is when serious talk of forming a union started to percolate among the hotel staff. According to Martin, “Management reprimanded us when we spoke out about mistreatment within our departments, inadequate working conditions, labor issues, unfair/illegal labor practices, tip theft and discrimination.”

Searching for a second job to supplement her income was also a difficult option.  Martin says was told that if she secured a second job she would have to tell the hotel management so that they could cut her hours.

“I told management that I was not going to tell them if I did get another job or not, because it was none of their business. I said that whatever I do with my time, while off the clock, and away from the Hilton is my personal life. It is my personal business, and it is not their concern. Management insisted that I was required to tell them if I got another job, because they didn’t want me working so much and intended on cutting my hours if I did.”

Of course, if the hotel paid decent wages and treated its employees with respect and dignity, workers like Martin might not need a second job.

On February 17 of this year, Martin says she was interrogated by her department manager, regarding “signatures.” It was obvious that management knew she was a member and leader of a union committee and was out collecting signatures from her coworkers with the intent of forming a union. The next day Martin says she was told by Hilton Providence Human Resources Manager Amanda Robataille that she was being suspended, pending termination. Martin says that Robataille had returned to work in early January after taking six weeks off for maternity leave.

Martin was suspended just four hours before the hotel worker’s first public action: the attempt to deliver a petition to the hotel management declaring the worker’s intent to form a union. Though delivery of the petition was rebuffed by Hilton management, a union was formed that day. Now the pressure needs to stay on The Procaccianti Group, the company that owns the Hilton, so that the union can be recognized and contract negotiations begun.

After the union action Martin was reinstated in her job, only to be suspended again a week later. As she awaits a decision as to whether or not this suspension is permanent, Martin has learned that the Hilton Providence has already run a job listing searching for her replacement. Effectively, she’s been fired.

“I am tired of not being able to afford both child care and rent, even though I work more than 30 hours a week,” said Martin. “Most of the days I work, I am working shifts in excess of 12 hours, without being able to take a break, because there aren’t enough employees on shift for me to be able to do so. I don’t receive welfare, housing assistance, WIC, or section 8. I live in a building that is contaminated with lead paint, but I am being told by other landlords and realtors that because I don’t have enough verifiable income, I’m unable to move into a new place. Because I don’t have a realistic and livable wage, I cannot afford to live in a healthy home, which my daughter, myself, and every other human being in the United States is entitled to.

“I am fighting for fairness and respect. I am fighting for the recognition of the hard work that workers do on a daily basis. I am fighting for fair wages, so that my coworkers and I can afford to provide for our families. More importantly, I am fighting to be allowed the ability to be the mother that my daughter needs and deserves.”

Hotel, fast food workers stand up for rights in RI


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hilton 1stamend rallyThere’s a bit of low-wage worker uprising happening here in Rhode Island.

Hilton Providence employees are holding an action to support their coworkers who were they say were fired for speaking out about the need for a labor union. A tweet from Unite Here 217 organizer Andrew Tillet-Saks called it a “Funeral for US Constitution to protest mass firings.” On Monday, Steve Ahlquist interviewed Adrienne Jones, who said she was fired from the Hilton Providence for speaking out. On Tuesday it was learned two employees were fired for speaking out about the work conditions at the downtown Providence hotel and seven others were disciplined.

And on Tuesday, the Rhode Island fight for $15 an hour for fast food workers moves from a Wendy’s in Warwick to a McDonald’s in Providence, where activists (I’m not sure about workers yet) will protest in solidarity with the McDonalds workers in California, Michaigan and New York are suing the corporation saying they were “illegally underpaid employees by erasing hours from their timecards, not paying overtime and ordering them to work off the clock.”

This from Rhode Island Jobs With Justice:

Fast-food workers have been at the forefront for economic justice. They’ve gone on strike, fighting for $15 and the right to form a union, fueling a national debate on income inequality and creating momentum to raise wages.

But in addition to not paying a decent wage, fast-food companies are making it even harder for their workers to afford even the basic necessities by stealing their wages. That’s why fast-food workers are making their voices heard again.

Join fast food workers from RI and community allies on TUESDAY, MARCH 18th, at 12:30, at the McDonald’s at 343 Broad St. in Providence, as we stand in solidarity with workers across the country who filed a national law-suit against wage theft at McDonald’s!

 

Podcast: NPR in PVD, Workers protest Renaissance Hotel, Taveras campaigns in Florida rather than talk ed. at URI


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Wednesday Dec 4, 2013
North Kingstown, RI – Good morning, Ocean State. This is Bob Plain, editor and publisher of the RI Future blog podcasting to you from The Hideaway on the banks of the Mattatuxet River behind the Shady Lea Mill in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.

waterfall 120313_5It’s Wednesday, December 4th … and National Public Radio’s Story Corps will be in Rhode Island today and tomorrow to interview homeless people to be aired on Morning Edition all across the nation. According to the Coalition for the Homeless, “The stories will be used for educational purposes to show Rhode Islanders the vast variety of experiences of homelessness and to break the stereotypes of
who is homeless in our state.”

Renaissance Hotel workers will stage yet another protest in front of the downtown Providence hotel today at 5pm. In a press release, organizers say, “In the tradition of this community’s support for working people, City hotel workers ask the friends of labor in Rhode Island to show they reject the Renaissance management’s tactics, by boycotting the Hotel.”

Yesterday, Providence Mayor Angel Taveras stayed in Florida to campaign rather than returning to Rhode Island to participate in the The URI Honors Colloquium on great public schools. Unless he reaped a big take in donations last night, this was yet another campaign misstep by Taveras … as the candidate for governor will be seeking the endorsement of the professors union there later this week.

My former philosophy professor and podcaster herself Cheryl Foster told the ProJo: “I personally would say we were profoundly disappointed not to have the chance to discuss the mayor’s award-winning proposal with him at the Colloquium, since we think that proposal was brilliant and connected well with our own values of bringing beauty and expression to the lives of all, including children at risk.”

Taveras was going to talk about a grant the Capital City received to help teach poor kids new words.

Correction: URI and PC play Thursday night.

If you want to know why the Koch brother-funded Center for Freedom and Prosperity is pushing for an elimination of the state sales tax, it’s probably not about how much economic activity it might generate but rather by the number of public sector jobs it will eliminate. Paul Dion, of the state Budget Office, said about 6,000 state workers would be eliminated.

A judge in Detroit ruled that pension benefits aren’t exempt from bankruptcy proceedings …. the New York Times’ Mary Williams Walsh reports that his ruling could affect other bankruptcy proceedings, she mentioned a few California cities but none in Rhode Island. In other pension news, Illinois also moved forward with pension cuts. In all these cases, the mitigating factor will be whether or not the delayed pay is a contractual right or a legislative gift. It’s also worth noting that unlike Detroit, Rhode Island is not going broke. We just wanted to save some money and didn’t feel like asking our richest residents to pony up.

And speaking of the state’s ongoing war against public sector employees, Ted Nesi suggests legacy costs, not high taxes, can be blamed for Rhode Island’s struggling economy…

But here’s theory not rooted in austerity: we used to have a ton of factory jobs in Rhode Island. Now we don’t. No matter what way we shrink the cost of operating a government, our private sector workforce won’t grow until we find a way to put the working class back to work.

Today in 1914, Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata meets with outlaw Pancho Villa … Zapata famously said, “It is better to die on my feet than live on your knees.”

In 1964, the Beatles released their fourth album, “The Beatles For Sale”

And today in 1970, Cesar Chavez was arrested for his role in the Salad Bowl Strike.

And speaking of standing up for better working conditions, fast food workers are meeting at the Warwick Fire Fighters Hall tomorrow at noon as part of a national day of action calling for better working conditions for fast food and other minimum wage workers.

And in their honor, our song of the day is a spoken work poem by Providence native, AS220 crony and warrior for social justice Jared Paul called “Class Warpath.” It’s the first track on his new live album recorded right here in Rhode Island.

 

Hotel, hospital workers unite!


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Members of Local 217 gather outside the Renaissance Hotel for an Informational Picket.
Members of Local 217 gather outside the Renaissance Hotel for an Informational Picket.

The working class stands up to management tonight in Providence as two groups of employees – one unionized, the other not yet – will protest outside their places of employment.

Hospital employees and SEIU members will be calling attention to job cuts at Women and Infants today at 4:15. “Despite budget surpluses, senior managers Care New England are attempting to cut corners and compromise patient safety by laying off housekeeping, lab, and clinical staff,” said Patrick Quinn of the SEIU.

“Management’s plan to cut staff will mean hospital rooms are cleaned less frequently and increase the risk of infections which compromises patient safety,” said Sukie Ream a labor delivery room nurse. “Layoffs to clinical and lab staff could delay delivery of lab results which is not fair to patients.”

And in downtown Providence, Renaissance Hotel workers will march there at 5 pm to call attention to the federal health and safety violations the hotel was recently fined $8,000 for According to a press release, “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently cited the Renaissance for serious violations, finding, amongst other violations, that “’employees’ hands, arms and faces were routinely exposed to corrosive and irritating chemicals.’”

Hotel housekeeper Santo Brito said, “Management has claimed that there is no safety problem, but the Federal investigation showed differently. Hotel management allowed these dangerous conditions to exist because workers have no voice at the Hotel. I am proud the workers stood up to stop this. The hazardous use of chemicals in the hotel caused us workers all kinds of physical suffering, from bad rashes all over our arms to frequent sickness.”

Teachers, hotel workers unite for Labor Day


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Working Rhode Islanders from across the economic spectrum (well the lower 99% of that spectrum, anyways) will unite this Labor Day as Jobs for Justice and the the Coalition to Defend Public Education will be marching together through downtown Providence Monday.

Jobs for Justice will be calling attention to the struggles of the staff at the Renaissance Hotel, who have long been fighting the poor conditions imposed by the multinational management company that owns the hotel. The Coalition to Defend Public Education does much of the grassroots organizing among teachers.

This could be a powerful coalition if these two groups figure out more ways to work together. The teachers begin their protest at 3 pm in front of City Hall in Providence. The hotel workers begin at 4:30 on Francis St, across from the Providence Place Mall.

Members of Local 217 gather outside the Renaissance Hotel for an Informational Picket.
Members of Local 217 gather outside the Renaissance Hotel for an Informational Picket.

teacher protest

Activists to protest hotel’s $9 million tax break

unitehereUnion activists and Providence residents plan to protest the Renaissance Hotel in Providence at 4:45 today because of a $9 million tax break they say the business gets from the city. The protesters plan to present hotel management with an over-sized gag check for $9 million they want them to sign over to city residents.

Here’s the press release from Andrew Tillett-Saks, an organizer with Unite Here Local 217 for a detailed account of why people are taking to the streets:

Dozens of Providence residents and area workers will hold a demonstration on Wednesday demanding that corporate welfare immediately end for the luxury Renaissance Hotel. Several organizations will participate in delivering an oversized ‘check’ to Renaissance Hotel Management to symbolize the nine millions dollar tax exemption the hotel receives from the City of Providence, as well as holding a demonstration outside of the hotel to protest the tax break for the controversial employer. The Hotel is scheduled to receive an additional tax savings of approximately eight to ten million dollars through an agreement with the City, extracting benefits that go far beyond its original purpose. The attendees believe that Providence will be better off without corporate handouts going to failed projects like 38 Studios or successful luxury hotels, and specifically decried the tax exemption for the wealthy Procaccianti Group which has recently come under scrutiny for its treatment of its workers at the hotel.

The Providence City Council introduced an ordinance to review the Renaissance Hotel’s tax break in the month of July. A tense standoff has ensued between The Procaccianti Group, who stand to lose millions if the tax exemption is repealed, and many Providence residents who feel the exemption is unfair and bad for the city.

Despite the December 2012 change in ownership to The Procaccianti Group, the corporate tax breaks have stayed in place.  “Why is my employer, a multi-million dollar hotel company who’s paying lower taxes than a Providence small business, paying me such low wages?” questioned one Renaissance Hotel employee Santa Brito.

“This is the City’s version of the 38 Studios fiasco,” said Juan Goris, a Providence resident in attendance at the demonstration. “Hard-working tax-payers keep bearing the burden while the rich give nothing back.”

The tax breaks continue to be provided at a time when the RI unemployment rate is still one of the highest rates in the country.  Meanwhile, many Providence residents who have found work, are still struggling to make ends meet.   According to the RI Kids Count 2012, over 35% of the children in Providence are part of families living below the federal poverty line.

Meanwhile, Providence for several consecutive years has been struggling to balance its budget – threatening the quality of public education, and city services like parks and policing. Most recently, the City felt forced to raise homeowner taxes approximately 6% citywide.  As a result, homeowners in some of Providence’s poorest neighborhoods will see their yearly property tax bill rise hundreds of dollars.  Previously, the City successfully negotiated increased payments in leiu of taxes (PILOT) with several of the City’s tax exempt institutions, like Brown University and Providence College.  It also renegotiated Agreements with City workers for further savings.

Originally, the Tax Stabilization Agreement was approved in 2003 as a way to redevelop a blighted area in the heart of the capital city, an unfinished, size adjective, Masonic Temple that had been abandoned since 1929. At the time, the project was praised by Mayor Cicilline and City Council members.  During the original passage, one council member explained the purpose of the Agreement:  “This is about providing good jobs for our residents as we continue to spur new economic development activity in Providence.”

Rhode Island Jobs with Justice, a coalition of labor unions and community groups, will be sponsoring the demonstration.

The Cranston City Council recently stopped The Procaccianti Group’s proposed Phenix Lodge luxury apartment complex.  One of the Council’s concerns was whether or not the project would actually generate revenue for the City assured by The Procaccianti Group.

Hotel Employees Picket Providence Renaissance


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Members of Local 217 gather outside the Renaissance Hotel for an Informational Picket.

It seems that the new boss is the same as the old boss at the Renaissance Hotel in Providence.

The Renaissance was made famous not for its stellar customer service, but for this now infamous YouTube video of Joey DeFrancesco quitting his job with the help of the What Cheer? Brigade.

Joey quit his job over wage and tip theft being perpetrated by the management of the hotel, and he subsequently worked with State Representative Chris Blazejewski to craft legislation to make the practice illegal.

But the Rhode Island based Procaccianti Group has taken a cue from the former owners of the hotel and continues to treat workers poorly slashing wages and promoting unsafe working conditions and practices.

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Workers say the hotel has always treated them poorly, but that conditions further deteriorated since the Procaccianti Group, a national hotel management company, took over the hotel in December 2012. The Hotel’s top management remains the same. Employees say they have had enough. They are demanding a voice on the job.

Raquel Cruz a housekeeper, said: “When the new owners took over, they changed the chemicals we use to clean rooms. The new chemicals make it hard to breathe and most housekeepers have rashes up and down their arms. They never trained us how to use them properly. We are all worried about the long-term damage they will cause to our bodies.”

Hipolito Rivera, houseman in the Hotel since it opened in 2007, described a day in the laundry: “The laundry department is so understaffed that a few workers have to rush to complete the jobs of  several people. Employees leave exhausted everyday, muscles aching unbearably, with hands that are becoming permanently damaged from having to continually rotate between the hot industrial ironer and the cold, wet sheets and towels.”

One housekeeper, Santa Brito, was fired from the hotel just 2 weeks after giving birth. The hotel relented and gave her job back, but only after a complaint was filed with the Department of Labor. Adding insult to injury, management then refused to provide her with employment verification papers that she needed to purchase a house.

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