UNITE HERE Local 11 Announces Prominent Film Director Alfonso Cuarón Joins Boycott of Chateau Marmont

The multi-Academy-Award-winner takes stand following lawsuit by former worker alleging sexual harassment and race discrimination

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Alfonso Cuarón, multi-Academy Award-winner and Mexican film icon, pledged to boycott the Chateau Marmont until its workers are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. His pledge comes on the 1-year anniversary of mass firings and follows a lawsuit by a former worker alleging sexual harassment and race discrimination at the Chateau Marmont.

Alfonso Cuarón joins legend Jane Fonda in calling for a boycott of the Chateau Marmont until hotel management demonstrates a commitment to respect its workers’ years of service by rehiring them in accordance with their legal rights and to ensure that all workers—regardless of their race, sex, or background—feel treated with dignity and respect. Hundreds more have called for fair treatment of Chateau Marmont workers, including SAG-AFTRA president Gabrielle Carteris and the Hollywood chapter of the National Organization for Women.

Alfonso Cuarón has made breakthrough films uplifting the stories of the hardest working people in society, including his 2019 award-winning film Roma. Cuarón is one of a handful of filmmakers to win an Oscar for Best Director multiple times (for Roma and Gravity) and the first Mexico-born filmmaker to win the award.

“To hear that Alfonso Cuarón, who I admire and had greeted for so many years, is fighting alongside me and my coworkers for the justice we deserve means the world to me,” said Carlos Barrera, 40-year garage attendant at the Chateau Marmont.

Last month, workers and allies gathered outside the Chateau Marmont calling for the boycott of the hotel. Many of the hotel’s workers have spoken out about their experiences working at “Hollywood’s Playground,” prompting concern from community leaders. The Chateau Marmont fired virtually its entire workforce in March 2020, leaving workers who had dedicated decades of their lives to the hotel without job security or affordable healthcare during the pandemic. Earlier this year, former events server Thomasina Gross filed a lawsuit against the Chateau Marmont alleging that she experienced race discrimination and sexual harassment while working there.

UNITE HERE Local 11 is a labor union representing over 32,000 hospitality workers in Southern California and Arizona who work in hotels, restaurants, universities, convention centers, and airports.