The Hilton in Baltimore's Inner Harbor could face a worker strike on Thursday.
About 200 workers in the UNITE HERE Local 7 union voted in an overwhelming majority on Friday to authorize a strike.
97% voted in favor of authorizing the strike.
"Workers say after months of unsuccessful negotiations, they're tired of waiting for raises, better workloads, and protections for work associated with providing guest services and amenities," the union wrote in a press release.
Their contract expires on August 15th, at which point the union's negotiating committee has the authority now to call the strike.
"I'm ready to strike because I'm tired of smiling through my day while I worry about how I'm going to keep the lights on and put food on the table," Jeffrey Barner, a Bellman at the Hilton Waterfront, says in the press release from the union.
The workers include housekeepers, front desk agents, cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders, bellmen, and other workers at the Hilton.
"Our members absolutely love this city," Tracy Lingo, the union's president, told WMAR in an interview. "They love being ambassadors of this city. And all we're saying is, we want to make sure the money that comes to our city through tourism stays in our neighborhoods and benefits our city."
"What we're seeing is the hotels are full, but people's real income has declined," Lingo said.
A Hilton spokesperson said in response to a request for comment, "We are currently in negotiations with UNITE HERE, Local 7, which represents some of our Team Members, for a new collective bargaining agreement. Hilton has an established track record of successfully negotiating labor agreements with UNITE HERE Local 7 and is committed to negotiating in good faith to reach a fair and reasonable agreement that is beneficial to both our valued team members and to our hotels."
