Local 5 ratifies Turtle Bay deal

Not a single attending member opposes the contract which ends a long-standing boycott

Turtle Bay Resort employees "overwhelmingly" ratified a new labor contract ending years of labor strife, hotel management and the hotel workers' union announced yesterday.

Nearly 400 bargaining unit employees in the Unite Here! Local 5 are affected by the agreement with Benchmark Hospitality, the hotel management company, said a joint statement.

No workers attending the contract ratification vote yesterday at Sunset Christian School voted against the agreement, said union spokeswoman Michelle Andrews.

Non-tipped employees will receive $2.45 an hour in raises beginning in January and tipped employees will receive 80 cents an hour in raises plus removal of the tip credit over the four year contract.

The company will also contribute $3.15 an hour for medical benefits and an additional $1 an hour to the pension fund.

The hotel will be allowed to continue with any work already subcontracted, but the union will have to approve any new subcontracted work.

The vote ends the union's long-standing consumer boycott of the hotel. Oahu's only major hotel on the North Shore has been in contentious negotiations with the union and its members have been working without a contract since 2002.

They sought and received pay, benefits and job protection similar to those at Waikiki hotels.

"Our members are happy with the agreement and we are pleased to welcome all our valued guests back to the resort," Eric Gill, Local 5 secretary-treasurer, said in the joint statement.

The official signing of the contract ratified yesterday will be Aug. 1 at the resort.

"This agreement is a win-win outcome for both the employees and the hotel, and it creates a solid foundation on which to build our future together as one ohana," Bob Boyle, Turtle Bay managing director, said in the joint statement.

"We fought very hard for the employees to ensure they would receive appropriate benefits," said Gill in the statement. "I believe Local 5 and Turtle Bay Resort now have a deeper respect for each other, and there is a much greater sense of trust so we can move forward together."

The new contract will also: