LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--French firm Natixis Group has accepted the offer of the French National Contact Point (NCP) for the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises to begin dialogue about a longstanding labor dispute at the Westin Long Beach hotel, according to UNITE HERE. As described in a report issued by the French NCP, the hotel is operated by a U.S.-based company and is indirectly owned by a U.S. pension fund advised by a U.S. subsidiary of Natixis, AEW Capital Management. The French NCP has announced that it will examine the French part of the case relating to due diligence and will coordinate with the U.S. NCP.
The French NCP was previously instrumental in resolving labor disputes between UNITE HERE Local 75 in Toronto, Ontario and hotel company Accor Group regarding the Novotel Mississauga and Novotel North York.
UNITE HERE Local 11’s OECD complaint alleges that Natixis failed to avoid and address violations of ILO core labor standards and OECD Guidelines at the Westin Long Beach, including an anti-union intimidation campaign against workers.
Over two years ago, non-union workers approached Westin Long Beach management to request a fair process by which they could decide whether to unionize free from harassment, intimidation and other management interference, says UNITE HERE. Hotel management initially rebuffed employees’ request, but workers are hopeful that Natixis’s acceptance of dialogue signals its willingness to contribute to a resolution of the longstanding labor dispute by facilitating a labor peace agreement with UNITE HERE Local 11.
Other investment managers active in the hospitality industry have reached labor peace agreements with UNITE HERE that have provided workers with the fair process Westin Long Beach workers have requested. Click here for a list of those investment managers, which include Blackstone Group, CIM Group and Apollo Global Management.
Following a finding by the French NCP that Accor Group violated the OECD Guidelines in Canada and Benin, a dialogue initiated and mediated by the IUF led to a successful resolution of the dispute in Canada and recognition of UNITE HERE Local 75 at the Novotel North York by Accor. UNITE HERE is an affiliate of the IUF, a global trade union federation.