The hotel workers who are currently on a hunger strike to urge the provincial government to protect their jobs will be moving their demonstration to the Lower Mainland.
Sixteen days ago, 10 workers with Unite Here Local 40 union went on a hunger strike at the B.C. legislature to put pressure on the B.C. government to ensure all hospitality workers who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic will be called back to work when it’s safe to do so.
According to Unite Here Local 40, over 50,000 hotel workers have been laid off throughout British Columbia as a result of COVID-19 and they are looking for a legal guarantee that there will be jobs to return to.
On Thursday, the “Fast for Our Jobs” hunger strike on the B.C. legislature will be moving to Maple Ridge. The hotel workers and allies will be holding a demonstration outside Tourism Minister Lisa Beare’s office on Lougheed Highway.
“The fasters will encamp outside Beare’s office beginning Aug. 27 and continue their hunger strike until the government grants workers a legal right to return to their jobs,” Unite Here Local 40 said in a release.
B.C.’s tourism and hospitality sector is asking the provincial government for a $680-million stimulus package to help businesses and workers affected by the pandemic.
With files from CBC
CHEK News
