 | Second Communication from ASA Leadership Regarding Labor Situation at 2010 Annual Meeting Venue
Jul 16, 2010 06:43 AM
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Dear ASA Members and Annual Meeting Participants: This is the second communication about the labor situation in San Francisco and how each member of ASA and meeting participant may be affected. Unite Here! Local 2, which is the union representing approximately 9,000 hotel service workers in the San Francisco area has been communicating directly with some ASA members. The message asks the recipient to boycott the Westin St. Francis Hotel, to encourage the ASA leadership to move to another venue, and to sign a petition in support of the hotel workers. During a recent conversation with the union, the ASA leadership agreed that it would distribute the following documents: Letter to ASA Membership from United Here Local 2
Facts and Figures about Starwood
Pledge Form
"Don't Get Caught in a Bad Hotel" Video
We want to assure you again, as we did in the letter of June 15, that the ASA staff thoroughly explored a variety of options, including moving to a different hotel in the San Francisco area as well as different cities in the area. The union offered to assist but has been unable to provide any viable hotel or conference venue alternatives that are available and not on the Unite Here! boycott list. The Board certainly would consider some modification of our meeting model. But at the minimum we require a venue that can offer sufficient rooms to accommodate 11 concurrent two hour academic sessions from 8am to 5pm Thursday to Sunday, as well as space for plenaries, book exhibit and video presentations together with staff support. This facility has to be convenient to a hotel or hotels with sufficient accommodation available. In our communication of June 15, we explained the financial cost to ASA if there is a decision to boycott the Westin Hotel. In good conscience, the Board of Directors felt it could not expose the ASA to the potentially severe financial repercussions of a boycott. We were gratified by the many thoughtful responses we received and continue to believe that, given the alternative, the decision to hold the Annual Meeting at the Hotel Westin St. Francis is in the best long term interests of ASA. It is important to understand that ASA could face a penalty that could well exceed $300,000 if the contract with the hotel is broken. Although the union claims that the ASA could avoid such a penalty, there is no evidence to support such a view. In fact, other academic organizations have been forced to pay such penalties with disastrous financial results. The ASA signed a contract and must assume that, if broken, the penalty will be levied. In addition there are very substantial costs associated with locating to a different venue and the likelihood of changing dates. For instance when changing venues was thoroughly explored this Spring, there were no available dates at any hotels in the area. In addition, due to the late date, the quoted rates for sleeping and meeting rooms, were at a premium in contrast to the lower contracted rates. The combination of the penalty and costs associated with relocation could easily equal the Association’s annual operating expenses of approximately $750,000. We recognize that the decision to attend the 53rd Annual ASA Meeting in San Francisco will present each of you with an important decision. Many of us have long histories of involvement with the labor movement and are very strong supporters of workers’ rights. Whether you have a connection to a union or not, we are confident that each of you believes in the importance of workers’ rights, fair labor practices, and the value of people to freely associate in order to effectively advocate for just causes. The ASA Board of Directors and the Secretariat are now considering how to exert pressure on the hotel to resume negotiations and quickly settle the dispute. We are developing contingency plans in the event there is a strike or protests during the ASA Annual Meeting. We will continue to communicate with the union as well as contacts at the Westin Hotel and we are monitoring the media in San Francisco in order to remain current. We are also communicating with other associations that have San Francisco meetings planned. You will all appreciate that we have limited resources available to us to undertake these tasks and we would like to ask any of you with thoughts on strategies on how we could proceed to get in contact with one of us. Meanwhile, planning for the 53rd ASA Annual Meeting is proceeding. The Program Committee has been reviewing the exciting proposal submissions and the Local Arrangements Committee has been working hard to ensure that every participant receives a warm welcome to San Francisco. The ASA leadership remains committed to providing members and all registrants for the Annual Meeting with information regarding the labor dispute. We welcome your comments and suggestions. Sincerely, Charles Ambler, ASA President Judith Byfield, ASA Vice President Karen Jenkins, ASA Executive Director
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