Mr. Kremp

Hospitality Law

Union’s Archaic Strategy is What Lead to Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA)

By Paul R. Kremp, General Manager, Rochester Plaza Hotel & Conference Center

I’ve been managing through an interesting period for the past several years with the Workers United Union (Formerly half of Unite-Here), which has been making attempts to organize the dedicated employees at our hotel. The process given me a first-hand look and educated me as to the strategies the Union has implemented. Generally, I guess you could say it’s like living in the history books. You may ask why I say this. The union’s archaic strategies have led me to understand why our political and union leaders are pushing so hard for the Employee Free Choice Act. (EFCA)

Almost seven years ago, I was asked to meet the local chair of the Democratic Party, who happened to be a friend and acquaintance. At this meeting she requested that I allow the local union to organize and represent the employees. I politely turned down this request.

A year or so later, the new local Democratic Chair approached me and asked if I would be willing to allow the union to represent our employees. It was a simple request; the Democratic Party wanted me to allow the local union leader to come in to organize our employees. They wanted me to step aside, and allow our employees to become organized (Using the card check system and not the National Labor Relations Board secret ballot election process). I was told our community, namely our hotel, would be able to host the state Democratic convention in the upcoming years as an opportunity to support more economic development.

At the time, no employees were organized in any hotel in our market. It remains that way seven years later. After some research, it seemed to me the real motivation was to place our county on the New York State map for the Democratic Party, improve the position of local Democrats at the state level, and to increase organized labor numbers in our region, all of which I could understand.

Our region is one of the last regions in the state where organized labor membership is well behind the rest of the State. I thought the union was organized to help its members, but this topic didn’t even come up. Not once did anyone explain to me why it would be good for our employees and hotel ownership except that it would bring a political convention to the city of Rochester. I thought this inquiry might go away, as it did in years past, and it did for another year or so.

Then in early 2006 it was brought to my attention that hotel employees were passing cards and pressuring each other to sign the cards to be represented by the Unite-Here Union. A full blown “Card Signing Campaign” was going on in the hotel.

The Union had a partner. That partner helping the Union organize our employees was at that time an organization unknown to me, called Clergy Laity United for Economic Justice, better known as CLUE. It was unclear to me at first what the role CLUE was going take, but it didn’t take long for me to catch on.

Within a few weeks I received in the mail, a letter from CLUE asking that I participate in what they called “Community Organizing Standards.” The organizing standards are a list of demands put upon hotel management to abide by during the organizing efforts of the Union. The mission of CLUE was to participate in the organizing process in a role described as an arbitrator looking out for the best interest of the employees, management, union, and the hotel ownership.

What I read was far different than what would have been considered protecting the rights of all involved. One standard stated that the hotel would not engage a legal or union consulting firm supporting our effort to manage through this process. The organizing standards asked management to participate in dialog with union representatives. This alone could have been construed as negotiations and legally could have bound our employees to become Union members with no election. As I mentioned before, my actions could have legal implications affecting all involved. It wasn’t my place to make the decision for our employees that they be represented.

The CLUE organization made up of religious leaders in our community was charged up and ready to take on this task. CLUE repeatedly asked to meet with me and begin to discuss the organizing standards and how we could all proceed. I was cautious, but I agreed to meet with them in my office. The first meeting was interesting. Without my knowledge they brought a union officer with them, who apparently also was an ordained minister. I began to realize the depth of their resolve.

Once we began to speak, they kept mentioning a “living wage” was the standard that we should agree to set forth in our community. The city already had passed legislation a few years earlier supporting the “living wage” standard. The living wage standard is an unenforceable wage decree. The State and Federal Government are the only entities that set wages that become law. To be honest, this was the first time I had heard of the “living wage” proposed by CLUE.

The CLUE group pushed, accused me of intimidation, harassment, and in general of being a bad guy to our employees. It was personally upsetting and frustrating to hear this from so many religious leaders, some of whom we had done business with for many years.

I was being attacked and all I had was one question to which I have yet to receive an answer. “If this tightly organized group of religious leaders was so interested in the well- being of our employees for so many years prior, then why would they need to be connected with a union to reach out to me?” Once the Union was involved, it established a legal process outlined by the National Labor Relations Board. Once I read about the National CLUE organization, I knew this was a lost cause. There are many years of partnerships between unions and CLUE in cities such as Baltimore, Detroit, and LA.

An undercurrent of negative attitudes towards management and a feeling of distrust by our employees quickly arose. We had never had this type of relationship with our employees in prior years. We took pride in our good relationships, both business and some more personal. More than half of our managers had been promoted from within the hotel over the years. We even had family relationships where one person was a manager or supervisor and the other an hourly associate. This was very frustrating as I had not been in the type of work environment where there was such tension among the employees and managers. This situation even split family relations.

I began holding meetings with our employees and gave them the facts on the process in which they would have to proceed. I did not want to lose the trust I had developed with our team over the years. I was honest about the organizing process our employees faced. I am known for being straight and to the point. So I incorporated my natural personality into the talking points.

I clearly outlined that they may be making a difficult decision about their future, and by choosing representation they would become part of a group, limiting their individual rights as an employee, and paying for representation through union dues and fees. We always strived to build working relationships with our team and I do believe they didn’t want to give up their individual freedom to work with our team and me. I also explained I would support whatever decision they made, that they would be solely responsible for making this decision if the time came and that I would not interfere - either supporting or opposing the organizing effort.

I can’t tell you how many times employees came to me requesting specific information on what to do. I could clearly explain the process, but not tell them what to do. Needless to say, a lot of misinformation spun throughout the hotel, and it was challenging to disseminate truth and fact. I just focused on facts and didn’t try to run down everything I heard. It would have been impossible, so I elected to stay on message.

As days passed, the strategy union and CLUE became clear. Employees were being told management was not looking out for their best interest, and that they (union) could do better. I heard stories of their being promised better wages, benefits and a stronger voice in dealing with management. I heard that employees were asked to make statements that were not true - hearsay comments ranging from racist complaints to false unfair labor action claims against management. There were claims of management intimidation and that I was not allowing the employees to organize and make free statements. The union and CLUE made every effort to discredit ownership and management relationships with the employees.

“Old school,” is how I refer to union and CLUE strategy. I give our employees a lot of credit, because it didn’t take long for what I believe was the majority of employees to figure out that what they heard from the union and CLUE was different than what they lived everyday working at the hotel. Employees were told that management was bad, and the union was good. The employees don’t see it that way. For almost four years there has never been a petition by the union to hold a secret ballot election. This is very telling because I believe the union and CLUE have lost any early gains of support they may have gotten from our associates. I believe the employees didn’t get solid reliable factual answers from the union, and they heard how the union and CLUE mistreated management. CLUE and union representatives went to their homes, and tried to break up our relationships. We’re not perfect, but we have always tried and worked with our team to provide a good place to work. That’s a simple response to a complex process. One of our mantras is to “create a place where people want to work.”

The most fundamental issue the union is facing is declining enrollment, but they use “old school” tactics that don’t work in today’s marketplace. They have failed to realize that the business is different today. Finding and hiring excellent people is very competitive. If business is successful, so is the team. Once a business chooses the right people, it is paramount to create a work environment where employees want to come to work and contribute to the business’s success. Maintaining positive relationships with employees is the most important tool in our arsenal to succeed. It is my responsibility as the stakeholder to create an environment where people want to work.

Unions have turned to service sectors to build their ranks. For the 35 years I have been in the hotel business, it’s been drilled into me to take care of your employees and reduce turnover. This is fundamental and paramount to your success as a hotel leader. Unions face an uphill battle because they don’t understand the efforts made in the hospitality business to take care of its dedicated staff. Union strategy is as archaic as the union. As long as union leaders continue their current strategy they will continue to lose this battle.

But their new tactics are frightening.

Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), takes away the individual right to privacy and the individual right to choose. EFCA eliminates the “secret ballot” election process currently law as outlined by the National Labor Relations Board. Currently, for a union to organize new businesses, they are required to obtain cards signed by 30% of employees. Once obtained the union can petition for a secret ballot election. Typically Unions will not petition for an election unless it has well over 50% signed cards. I have experienced the stress that our employees go through in this process. I can’t imagine when with no secret ballot and no privacy what it will be like when employees push each other to sign cards. Even elections for political office require secret ballots.

Unions’ failed efforts to develop new strategies, progressive thinking, and working in conjunction with businesses has led to EFCA. I have experienced negative and failed organizing campaigns conducted with questionable business practices and lack of understanding today’s employee and what motivates them beyond a paycheck. The Union chooses to do business the “Old School” method, maintain unfavorable relationships not only with the business they are in but with their own potential members.

So the Unions once again with their millions of dollars will influence the politicians to change the laws of the land, in an attempt to get what they want, instead of spending the millions on employee relations, business relationships, even strategies on how to organize in today’s market. Why would the unions change there methods, it’s easier to just influence the politicians with money.

Would we ever change the “secret ballot” manner in which elect our political leaders? I hope not. But EFCA is a step in that direction. I believe unions’ failed efforts may lead our country down this very slippery slope.

Paul Kremp is General Manager of the Rochester Plaza Hotel & Conference Center, one of the largest hotels in downtown Rochester, New York. The hotel, which is owned by Summit Hospitality, Inc of New York, has 362 rooms and suites, several restaurants and extensive meeting services and banquet space. A 35-year hotel veteran, Mr Kremp has worked in both hotel management, franchise and owner operator capacity throughout his career at brands including Radisson, Ramada, Marriott, Red Roof Inn, Microtel, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Hampton Inn, and for independent hotels. Mr. Kremp can be contacted at 585-324-0032 or pkremp@rochesterplaza.com Extended Bio...

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