Hotel Union Negotiation Case Study

Getnick Law Managing Partner Neil Getnick represented the Chateau Marmont Hotel in labor negotiations that produced a collective bargaining agreement vital to the hotel’s ongoing success. In doing so, Getnick worked with hotel management, union leadership, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (“SCLC”)’s Southern California Chapter President to create a win-win resolution that reflected the common goals of the hotel, its workers, and the union.

The negotiation process and result were so successful that the SCLC’s Sourthern California Chapter featured the Chateau Marmont’s story in a video at its 2023 Annual Labor & Community Awards Luncheon.

In discussing the negotiations, Getnick recalled saying in the first meeting: “We’re not here to tolerate, or even accept, the workers and their union-supported efforts. We’re here to embrace them. Let’s work together. Let’s make that happen. . . .” As a result of that approach, the group was able to “fashion a strong, effective agreement that really supported the rights of the workers,” while complementing the hotel’s business model.

Pastor William D. Smart Jr., SCLC Southern California’s President, said that the agreement demonstrated “what can happen in America when we begin to talk to each other, sit down, and realize the principles of Dr. Martin Luther King.”

Getnick’s approach to the negotiations resulted in a speedy resolution: the bargaining unit was agreed upon only two months after his first meeting with union leadership and a collective bargaining agreement was signed only four months after that. As a result, the Chateau was able to demonstrate a concrete commitment to its workers and quickly return to business once negotiations began.