Over 1,000 Canadian labour leaders, members and supporters attend Unity Rally in support of UNITE HERE Local 75 workers at historic Fairmont Royal York Hotel

Toronto, Ontario, March 26, 2018 – The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) and dozens of its union affiliates put the weight of the Canadian labour movement behind UNITE HERE Local 75 at a Unity Rally at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel on Monday, March 26, 2018.

More than 1,000 Canadian labour leaders, members and supporters came out in a show of solidarity for the nearly 900 UNITE HERE Local 75 workers currently negotiating a new collective agreement with the Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

“Knowing our union is backed by the 3.3 million members of the Canadian Labour Congress fortifies us as we move forward in negotiating an improved contract. We are stronger just knowing they have our back,” said Cicely Phillips, a room attendant and member of the UNITE HERE Local 75 Negotiating Committee at the Fairmont Royal York.

The CLC is the largest labour organization in Canada, representing over 3 million workers and bringing together Canada’s national, international, and provincial unions along with the provincial and territorial federations of labour and 107 district labour councils, whose members work in virtually all sectors of the Canadian economy, in all occupations, in all parts of Canada. Dozens of other CLC affiliates joined UNITE HERE Local 75 and the CLC at the Unity Rally.

“As members of UNITE HERE! Local 75, Royal York workers truly understand that there is strength in numbers. That is the same principle that binds workers together in strength and solidarity through the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC). Now, as you bargain with your employer, you have the weight of Canada’s labour movement behind you,” said Canadian Labour Congress President Hassan Yussuff.

UNITE HERE Local 75 is currently in contract negotiations with the Fairmont Royal York Hotel and is seeking to strengthen benefits and pensions, redress unbearable workloads, and raise wages for workers at the hotel, among other improvements.

“UNITE HERE is proud to stand united with our sisters and brothers across the Canadian labour movement. This movement shows the type of true solidarity that workers need to win what they deserve—at the Fairmont Royal York, throughout the GTA, and around the globe,” said UNITE HERE International President D Taylor.

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About UNITE HERE

UNITE HERE is a labor union representing 270,000 hospitality workers across Canada and the United States. An affiliate of the largest hotel workers union in the world, UNITE HERE Local 75 represents nearly 8,000 hospitality workers at 43 hotels in the Greater Toronto Area.

Media Contact:

Colleen Ryan
647-232-6867