Carolers stand outside an impressive two-story West Hills
home, their faces illuminated by the Christmas lights
as they lift their voices in joyous song. Nothing unusual
here, except that instead of the usual repertoire of "We
Wish you a Merry Christmas," "Deck the Halls" and "Silent
Night," they're singing "Solidarity Forever," "Lump the
Bosses Off Your Back" and "Union Maid."
The singers are employees and former employees of the
Mallory Hotel, and their labor songs are a protest directed
toward owner Albert Gentner.
Gentner's troubles started in October, when he fired
hotel chef Ann Graffi. Her former co-workers say that
hotel management tried to hide her firing for two days,
insisting she had quit. Her sudden dismissal and its
coverup angered several staff members, who felt it typified
management's lack of concern for employees.
"This kind of trouble has always been there," says
"Lil" Pete, one of the workers. "There is a consistent
policy of mistreatment."
The 100-plus employees of the Mallory, which is at
729 SW 15th Ave., aren't unionized, but a small group
has an unofficial affiliation with the International
Workers of the World, the radical labor group whose
mission is to eliminate capitalism.
Working with IWW organizers, some workers decided to
protest Graffi's firing. On Oct. 20, six on-duty employees
and five off-duty employees sat down in the lobby, effectively
shutting down the hotel. They demanded an end to unjust
and arbitrary firings, the establishment of a grievance
procedure with employee participation and amnesty for
the workers participating in the protest.
Gentner seemed baffled by the rebellion. A video tape
of the event, reviewed by WW, shows Gentner making
his case. "You're a good worker," he says to Pete. "I
don't know why you want to do this."
At one point in the footage Gentner asks Pete, who
has risen, to sit down. When Pete refuses, Gentner says,
"OK, you're fired!" When Pete asks for a reason, Gentner
replies: "You're fired for not sitting down."
The workers say that in the course of the action, all
of them were fired. When they returned the next day
to pick up their final checks, the five who were not
on duty during the protest were offered their jobs back.
They refused, saying they would only return to work
if all 11 could return to the payroll.
After managers refused their offer, the organizers
say, the workers filed a charge with the National Labor
Relations Board on Oct. 22, saying the work stoppage
is a protected activity under federal labor law.
Gentner declined to discuss the conflict with WW,
but according to the organizers, the hotel management
has claimed that the work stoppage was illegal and therefore
legitimate grounds for termination. The hotel managers
reportedly also charge that the protest endangered the
safety of guests and other employees.
The clash didn't end there. Last month, the workers
filed another charge against Gentner, this time relating
to his ownership of the Imperial Hotel at 400 SW Broadway.
Workers say that after being fired from the Mallory,
several applied for jobs at the Imperial on Nov. 7,
only to be told there were no vacancies. But the next
day, the Imperial Hotel ran an ad in The Oregonian
advertising openings. The workers filed a charge with
the NLRB, claiming the hotel discriminated against them.
Although conflicts between hotel workers and managers
are nothing new, this fight may take a modern twist.
The day of the initial sit-down, the IWW put up a Web
site to keep employees and supporters up to date with
events. The site includes photos of the protesters and
a chronology of the events that took place in October
and November. As far as Web sites go, it's not terrible
noteworthy, except for one feature: The IWW took the
domain name www.malloryhotel.org.
Workers say the hotel has responded with threats of
a lawsuit, charging that it has the right to that name.
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Willamette Week | originally
published December 22,
1999
