Democrats Bear Brunt of Hotel Union’s Policy

COSTA MESA —  State Democratic candidates who already feel they are on enemy territory in Republican-rich Orange County will now face angry picket lines unless they restrict their local public appearances to a handful of union-approved hotels, labor officials said Monday.

Leaders of the Orange County Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Local 681 said that a picket line formed Monday, which turned away three state Democratic candidates from an event in Costa Mesa, was the first action in a newly beefed-up union effort.

Steven Beyer, president of the local, an AFL-CIO affiliate, said the union has recently decided to “strictly enforce” its policy of pressuring candidates from both parties to avoid hotels that do not employ union workers.

“It’s a policy we’re starting to enforce,” Beyer said. “If you choose to ignore it, we will do everything to make sure there are consequences.”

Since Democratic candidates traditionally rely on union support far more than Republicans do, the policy has its greatest impact on Democratic campaigns.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Sen. Pete Wilson said he had no qualms about crossing the picket line Monday to speak to the California Peace Officers Assn. convention at the Red Lion Inn. But both of his Democratic opponents--John K. Van de Kamp and Dianne Feinstein--decided not to enter the hotel.

Feinstein was forced to give her speech in a parking lot across the street. “If I go through the line, it gives labor the opportunity to organize against me,” she said. “If I don’t cross, it’s a sign of weakness.”

The AFL-CIO recently endorsed Van de Kamp.

Democratic attorney general candidate Ira Reiner also declined to cross the picket line, although his Republican opponent, Dan Lungren, spoke to the convention.

The only Democrat to attend the convention Monday was Arlo Smith, a Democratic candidate for attorney general. Smith said he never saw the picket line.

In Orange County, the union demand is particularly restrictive because there are only five facilities that meet the labor standards. They are the Anaheim Hilton, the Disneyland Hotel, the Grand Hotel and the Inn at the Park, all in Anaheim, and the Balboa Bay Club in Newport Beach.

Beyer said the union will negotiate with hotels and candidates if their needs cannot be met by one of the approved hotels. Some, with the most egregious employee practices, such as the Red Lion Inn, would be unacceptable in any case, he said.

Dan Carlino, spokesman for the Red Lion Inn, said the hotel would not comment. A spokesman for the police officers association, whose members are mostly union, also declined to comment.

Asked whether the hotel workers union wasn’t hurting its own cause by hampering Democratic candidates, Beyer said, “We regret ever having to put someone in a position where it might hurt them or not give them the best opportunity to convey their message. (But) my job is not to elect politicians; it is to protect my people.”

Mike Balmages, chairman of the Orange County Democratic Party, acknowledged that it is difficult for Democratic candidates to find union-approved facilities locally. But, he suggested, “they’d be well-advised to check with us. We do have a list of approved places.”

Dee Dee Myers, spokeswoman for Feinstein, said that the former San Francisco mayor has faced only one other union picket line in her campaign and that she did not cross it. She said that campaign officials do not keep a list of hotels statewide that employ union workers but that they have avoided some places at the request of labor leaders.