Ordinance aimed at downtown workers

PROVIDENCE—The Providence City Council is poised to pass an ordinance that would prevent downtown hotels from firing workers.

The Westin Hotel was built by Rhode Island taxpayers, and sold to the Procaccianti Group four years ago.

But activists say the hotels near the Rhode Island Convention Center benefit still from tax dollars.

“If it weren’t for our tax dollars being spent through the Convention Center Authority to bring conventions to our great city, none of the businesses in the convention center district would survive,“ said Francis Engler, a member Unite Here Local 217.

Many of the workers at the hotel make $12 to $15 an hour, quite a bit more than the minimum wage that subcontractors would pay replacement workers—a plan the union says Procaccianti wants to implement.

The hotel owners had no comment Thursday, but workers said they couldn’t make it at that pay scale.

“I’m just afraid because of what happened in Boston at the Hyatt, and they got rid of those people. They had them train their replacements, and they bring in people for half of the pay—$8 an hour. There’s no way I could live on that,“ said Chris Cook, a Westin employee.

Gov. Deval Patrick urged state workers to boycott the chain. Hyatt has since said the laid off housekeepers would be offered other full-time jobs in the Boston area.

Michael Solomon is a sponsor of the ordinance in Providence.  He said he’s not trying to send the message that the city is interfering with business.

“You saw what happened in Boston with the Hyatt. We just want to make sure that doesn’t happen here in Providence,“ Solomon said.

Solomon said the ordinance would only apply to hospitality businesses near the convention center.  The Westin’s owners reportedly testified against the ordinance in committee.