Greedpath: Yosemite's money trail to Buffalo

<b>Stronger evidence has surfaced that the company that runs Yosemite's concession services is trying to finish a new trail out of the park that leads directly into the pocketbook of the owner of the company, multimillionaire Jeremy Jacobs Sr.. Yosemite's concessions contract is worth at least $110 million per year, and the company expects at least $1 billion in sales out of the Yosemite contract by the time it expires in the next couple of years. The current trail being blazed out of Yosemite has been pioneered by Jacobs, company bigwigs, and his local representatives as a way to maximize profits made off the back of national and international workers who run Yosemite. Since Delaware North Company(DNC), affectionately known as Devil Needs Cash or Does Not Care by its employees, began running the Yosemite concessions they have been able to come up with numerous excuses for not paying and treating Yosemite workers fairly. Whether it was the flood of 1997, or the rockslide on 140 in 2006, the company has always found ways to excuse its greed and cover up the path that they have been creating back to the pockets of its billionaire owner.</b>

During union bargaining with the majority of Yosemite workers this last month, the company proposed minimal raises(3%, 2.5%, etc...), while trying to act as if Mr. Jacobs and DNC could not afford more. It was a company run theater at its best, with the head of Human Resources claiming he could lose his job for giving us so much in this recent round of bargaining, and the company lawyer claiming that this economic package was the most we could expect out of the company. In the end this theater seemed to work so well that it even seemed to affect a number of union bargaining committee members. With the first bargaining committee member offering that this was the most reasonable offer we could expect from the company. Another bargaining committee member than began to talk about how he felt that other employees would not fight for more and would settle for what DNC and Jacobs were offering. One thing is for sure the company is not currently suffering in the current economic situation. In fact ask any employee whether they feel the company could afford to do more for those that keep Yosemite running, and the resounding answer will be yes.
There is ample reason for union employees to feel demoralized and to say that 3% raises are unreasonable, as wages and conditions have either remained the same as when DNC came in or have actually become worse. There are also many ongoing housing issues that never seem to get addressed. In Boystown, which is right next to Curry Village, too many employees are packed into too small of an area with inadequate bathrooms, laundry, and kitchen facilities during the summer. In another housing area affectionately named Trainwreck(officially called Highland Court), trailers were supposed to be short term housing solutions after the flood of 1997(along the lings of the FEMA Katrina trailers only for much longer), but employees are still living in them to this day. Wages have also lost ground over the years to inflation, and the companies inadequate raises. Some wages have remained at the same level for years, while others have received minimal token increases or lump sum payments when contracts were renegotiated. The biggest increase in wages for many Yosemite workers came recently when the California minimum wage went up. The minimum wage increase also left many workers with more seniority at the same pay level as new hires.

Health coverage has been an important benefit through the years that has kept many employees working in Yosemite through the DNC years. With union members having a much better health insurance plan than DNC even offers it’s own management. This health insurance coverage has been fought for over many years, and workers have withstood many different attempts by DNC(and other previous concession companies)to water down the union health care plan. In recent negotiations the union began negotiations pushing for free health care coverage(see article in May edition of the Undercurrent), only to have management counter that they expected 15-22% increases in the health insurance plans premiums next year. Management then went on to explain that this cost would be passed down to employees, and with a little more thought offered to give union members the choice of joining the company’s management insurance plans to save money on monthly premiums. The problem with this being that the management health insurance plans are so horrible, that you not only loose money on co-pays and deductibles, but the plans don’t even cover an individual fully in the case of major injury or illness. Even the Human Resources director began to complain of DNC’s management insurance plans at the negotiation table with a little prompting. So, after a little back and forth during negotiations, the company’s final health care proposal was that they would cover 5% more of the union health plan monthly premium if we agree to the contract. The main problem with this is that the company proposed language for the contract that seeks to renegotiate the union health plan during the life of the contract without allowing workers to have the right to strike. The Unite Here local 19 president even objected to this language knowing full well that without the right to strike or act collectively, our health insurance coverage could change dramatically and maybe even mirror the poor health plans that management gets. There are still major problems with our current plan as it stands, as only 1/3 of Yosemite workers are currently enrolled. This leaves room to speculate about how many employees can’t afford the current plan because of low wages, weren’t enrolled in the plan for lack of information, or just haven’t passed the probation period set by the company. Regardless it is clear the company can’t be trusted to have the ability to change our health insurance without us being able to engage fully in collective bargaining, which would allow us the right to strike if need be.

The company has also been relying increasingly on international workers to do a lot of the dirtiest, most menial work in recent years. Internationals often receive the lowest wages with little hope of receiving the benefits that other employees at least have the possibility of getting after a while. If it weren’t for these workers, DNC would not currently be able to operate during the summer months. Wages and benefits are not the only thing these workers have to worry about while they are working in Yosemite. It is common knowledge that many managers for DNC have discriminated against the international workers in the past, and still do so currently. There are even some managers who actively engage in sexual harassment, even preying on certain groups of international workers. These workers often come to Yosemite through International Agencies with obligations to pay off the cost of travel and visas, leaving them feeling as if they have no choice in speaking out or changing jobs.

So now that you have begun to get a glimpse into the path that DNC is trying to take Yosemite workers down. The question is what's going to happen with the company's most recent attempts at maximizing their profits? The workers of Yosemite will be hearing in the coming weeks about the companies slap to their face, offering peanuts to us, while they rake in the dough. The union bargaining committee has scheduled a ratification vote for mid August, and if union members do not like the way that proposed 3 year contract looks, they can send everything back to the bargaining table. If workers do vote against the proposed contract they will also be sending the message to the company and union that they expect more and are willing to take a stand for it.

chuck mcnally
bike mechanic and Unite Here local 19 member