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Chicago's Park Hyatt turns on heat lamps on picketing unionized employees

by Grant Martin (RSS feed) on Jul 22nd 2011 at 12:00PM

Ouch. Were there any worse time to stage an outdoor protest in Chicago it would be this week. The temperature has been surging past 95 degrees for the past three days, and terrified residents are darting from air conditioned homestead to transportation to office.

The union workers at Chicago's Park Hyatt are taking a stand though, and on schedule were protesting over the course of this past Thursday. At issue? They're concerned with Hyatt's ability to contract non-union workers in the future -- and by extension the security of their current jobs. You can read more about their grievances over at the Chicago Tribune.

Naturally the strike is all within the rights of the unionized workers and the Park Hyatt has to respect their space -- except that they turned on the outdoor heat lamps during the protest. The move, blamed on one unruly manager, caught the attention of WBEZ yesterday morning, and since that time the hotel has been on the defensive, issuing the following statement.

"Hyatt regrets the events that occurred at the Park Hyatt Chicago and apologizes to everyone who was impacted by them. After looking into the incident, we have determined that the decision to turn on the heaters was made by a manager. It was clearly a decision that was not in line with our values or with our corporate policies. We have a long history of respecting our associates' rights and caring about their well-being and this unacceptable behavior is certainly is not illustrative of that history. We can assure you that this was an isolated incident and such a thing will not happen again"

[flickr image via Michael Lehet]

Filed under: Business, North America, United States, Hotels and Accommodations, News

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)

Tim Jul 22nd 2011 4:05PM

Don't worry the corporations only have your best intrests at heart. I am sure the manager thout they were cold.

ClintonCT Jul 23rd 2011 6:19PM

It's time to end unions. They were a great idea when this country had child labor, sweatshops, etc. They are a drain on our resources. Union members love the nanny state that Bams is trying to establlish.

gary Jul 22nd 2011 5:46PM

Oh yeah and unions are always have the best interest of their members.....not....Union officials who receive big pay checks are are worse than any "corporation"....

uniongirl Jul 23rd 2011 5:08PM

The scariest part about most of these comments is that you idiots think you know what you are talking about. Unions made this country and the middle class, I guess you think you get your weekend off, healthcare, pay raises, and our quality of life because the big corporations want to take care of the working man. Scary!

Hanrod Jul 23rd 2011 5:49PM

Of course unions sometimes act in favor of the organization itself, sometimes meaning the top decision makers in the union, and do not always keep the member interests in the forefront -- just like government and ALL organizations sometimes do. However, the "multi-national" corporate organizations ALWAYS do that, and often don't even pretend to care about their small customers and stockholders, their employees or their country of origin.

I'LL STAND WITH A (DEMOCRATIC) GOVERNMENT, AND WITH MY BROTHERS IN THE UNIONS -- PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, AND SO SHOULD ALL WORKING PEOPLE!

Fred997 Jul 23rd 2011 6:05PM

I have heard a lot of the 5 year olds comment on unions. Grow up and get your facts straight. You are right that a few mega-unions went too far but they pale compared to actual wars that were carried out against unions. Google coal miners wars and find out the lengths corporations will go to. I have yet to see a union gun down in cold blood hundreds of corporation executives. Do some reasearch before you make a fool of yourself idiot. Unions defend workers rights as human beings. Turning heaters on union protesters when the union was exercising their legal right smacks of something of the old sweat shop days.

Debbie Jul 23rd 2011 6:14PM

Where does fools like you get their info.

Stolen Jul 23rd 2011 2:21PM

No sympathy here, hope they turned those heaters on high for the (entitled) union workers.

pup81 Sep 18th 2011 8:53PM

What is the matter with some of you folks? Unions made it possible for decent working conditionsand fair wages. So many union people were able to do so much better in life for their families. I do no understand the petty comments be some of you. Yes, at unions have had their problems, but in general they did more good than bad. I am sick to death of listen to ignorant people who don't have sense enough to research first and then comment. You are being led and told by adovates for very rich people a pack of lies. The Republicans and Tea Party people are trying hurt the middle-class and poor for the sake of the rich.
The very man that got them to sign that stupid pledge is himself married to a devout Muslim woman. There, you're hero Grover Norquist is married to a Muslaim and had ties to Muslim organization. It's right on Wikipedia, look it up.

You ringwinger are always saying Pres. Obama is Muslim when he is Christian and married to Christian. Norquist is the one married to Muslim. He's the wolf in sheep's clothing.

Stolen Jul 23rd 2011 5:29PM

Too bad I'm a middle class individual who voted for Obama. Additionally, I paid union dues for 5 years and got nothing in return.

sirboss Jul 23rd 2011 4:17PM

Unions Brought us out of a depression and helped a lot of workers, then greed took over and they just put us back to the same place they took us out of!!! Unions are a main reason America has no jobs!!!!

Joe Jul 23rd 2011 5:31PM

UNIONS DID NOT BRING THIS COUNTRY OUT OF THE DEPRESSION! WORLD WAR 2 DID THAT!

Richard Jul 23rd 2011 6:12PM

Depending on what you mean, I might agree. As I have said on my blog (www.mourningdovehill.com), the (unionized) American worker has priced himself out of the world labor market.
But I also agree that, once upon a time, unions performed a sorely needed function by improving working conditions.

Walker Dog Jul 23rd 2011 8:24PM

No the main reason we are loseing jobs is because the big corperate BOSS'ES only want to pay $5.00 a week for an uneducated third world worker living in a dune heap with no one to fight for him/her and charge 5,000 times what it cost for that product to be built. Why did Whirpool go to Mexico and Otis elevator go to Mexico and so many other companies not because the unions are milkeing them but they want more fore less.
The real reason why we are in trouble in this country is because the gas companies are still getting $3.50 or more a gallon and that is drinving the prices for everything thru the roof. Please tell me why when diesl fuel is the byproduct of gas why it is so much more. WAKE UP OPEN YOUR EYES AND LOOK AT THE OIL COMPANIES THAT ARE HOLDING US HOSTAGE.

sc Jul 23rd 2011 9:45PM

i don't know what brand of weed you smoking but the unions did not get anyone out of the depression, the japs did that when they attacted Pearl Harbor and got the U. S in to the war. learn a little history, it may shock you.

bev Jul 23rd 2011 4:26PM

Unions are the reason most of the huge companies that use to be in the northeast went south. From there they went to outsourcing. Unions are one of the reasons this country has a scarce amount of jobs.

Jody Jul 23rd 2011 5:49PM

The shoe and textile industries left New England forthe south because of their desire for cheap, cheap, labo rin their sweatshops. They got away with it in the south. Few of these industries actually were unionized in NE. corporate greed, nothing more. We lived it up here and I know what I'm talking about.

Cian Jul 23rd 2011 7:50PM

Supposing it WERE the case that American jobs were lost due to unions, the obvious problem would not be that we have worked together as a people to demand fair working conditions and a living wage, (which is, of course, very undemocratic. What kind of people work together for a collective good?) but rather that other people are still desperate enough to work in such poor conditions. It would be unacceptable for American families to work under the same conditions as are present in Chinese factories, and it would be absurd and Un-American to propose we do. That is the only way we could get those jobs back from China. However, places like Germany have higher union membership, and still have manufacturing and other jobs, showing that your initial premise is false anyway.