Westin LAX Workers Protest Discipline Against Housekeeper Who Did Not Spot Bedbugs

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Workers at the Westin LAX Hotel will strike Wednesday to protest the disciplinary measures against a housekeeper who failed to spot bedbugs in a room she was assigned to clear, a union official said.

Workers began picketing outside the hotel at 6 a.m. and will continue until 6 p.m.

The hotel disciplined a long-time housekeeper for failing to spot the bedbugs in a room on Sept. 4, according to Antonio Mendoza of Unite Here Local 11, which represents hospitality workers.

The incident is the third time a housekeeper has been disciplined this year for failing to spot bedbugs, Mendoza said. Workers are not suspended or docked wages, but it is a step toward termination, he said.

Workers say the Westin LAX has increased their workload by rewarding guests for going days without having rooms cleaned, making housekeepers work harder after check-out, Mendoza said. The housekeepers claim it is unfair for management to discipline them for missing bedbugs while increasing their workload.

There was no immediate comment from the hotel.

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