Hotel workers, labor officials and supporters will rally this afternoon to mark the seventh anniversary of the strike at the Congress Hotel.
Today's events will focus heavily on immigration issues, and will feature U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez and other speakers.
Last year Gov. Pat Quinn and Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias spoke at the rally. They are not scheduled to appear this year.
Despite a stall in negotiations, the union is confident the strike will bear fruit, says spokeswoman Annemarie Strassel.
In 2003 hotel management froze wages and cut employee benefits. Union officials say hotel workers in Chicago earn an average of $14.60 an-hour; however workers at Congress Hotel earn $8.83 an hour. Union officials say they refuse to settle for substandard wages.
While the weather could turn bad this afternoon Strassel says that shouldn’t affect turnout.
“This strike has become something of a rallying point for the progressive community here in Chicago. They’ll be out in force today,” Strassel says.
Union officials say their strike resulted in $700,000 of business moving from the hotel over the last seven years.