Fighting Back

It’s not often business-owners are willing to take on the power of the union bosses, especially in New York City, but a small band of hotel owners are saying “enough.”

Union organizers in New York have used the Card Check Scam process to unionize hotel workers under an “agreement” from hotel owners like Marriot. But new hotel owners, especially smaller owners, never signed on. Yet the unions have tried to force workers into unions using the same process.

Not so fast. The Lam Group filed a petition in State Supreme Court to invalidate the decision on the grounds that the company never agreed to arbitration in the first place. The case was moved to federal court, and the litigation concluded more than a year ago. The two sides are awaiting Judge Paul Crotty’s decision in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York. Judge Crotty will decide whether hundreds of workers can be forced into a union — without an election. All sides are holding their breath for a decision.