Local 217 Endorses Lamont

by Dereen Shirnekhi

Lamont: “Nothing better than UNITE HERE.”

Local 217 members and leadership cheer for the two-term governor.

A statewide hospitality workers union endorsed Gov. Ned Lamont on Tuesday in his bid for reelection — becoming just the latest labor group to pledge their support for the two-term incumbent’s bid for another four years in office. 

The union, UNITE HERE Local 217, announced its endorsement with a press conference outside the union’s New Haven office at 425 College St. The presser featured union members and leadership standing alongside Lamont. 

Their endorsement marks the second union endorsement for Lamont in New Haven in less than a week. Last Friday, Lamont stood alongside Connecticut Teamsters union reps on Wallace Street as they pledged their support. Lamont has also won the endorsement of the Connecticut Carpenters Union.

“Workers need champions who pass legislation that helps them and their families in their daily lives, and the trade union movement needs allies who will fight alongside us,” said Local 217 Secretary-Treasurer Joshua Stanley.

“Our union has been fighting to get middle class families back on their feet, and the governor has stood with us every step of the way,” he said.

Local 217’s endorsement is exclusive to the hospitality workers union and does not include Yale’s political influential UNITE HERE Locals 33, 34, or 35. According to Stanley, the other UNITE HERE unions have their own endorsement processes, and Lamont recently spoke before Local 34 and 35 members. He noted that Lamont has shown a lot of support for those unions.

For 217, the endorsement was a “unanimous feeling from our executive board,” Stanley said. 

Lamont faces a Democratic primary challenge from progressive Hamden State Rep. Josh Elliott. Republicans seeking the state’s highest office include Greenwich State Sen. Ryan Fazio, former New York Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey, and former New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart.

Local 217 is proud to endorse Lamont for governor and Susan Bysiewicz for lieutenant governor, Stanley said, “because they have supported us as we grow, and because they understand that the trade union movement is a vital partner in overcoming our affordability crisis.”

Stanley pointed to some of Local 217’s recent accomplishments in the food service and hospitality sectors, including a strike at the Omni Hotel — where Lamont joined striking workers on the picket line — that led to a new four-year contract.

Local 217’s membership has grown in recent years from 2,000 workers to 3,000 workers, according to Stanley.

“Governor Lamont, we are fully behind you, and we look forward to continuing our work together,” he said.

“You want a fair shot in this complicated day and age, you ought to be represented by a union,” Lamont said. “Nothing better than UNITE HERE.”

He continued, “I want to tell you how much it means to us to have your support. We’ve got your back too.”

Local 217 1st Vice President Nicholas McDonald has been a member of Local 217 for 31 years, working at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) as a cook, caterer, and now a receiver who stores food and products.

“He’s a man of his word,” McDonald said of Lamont. He said that the governor showed “solidarity” with SCSU workers as they rallied for better wages and voted to authorize a strike.

Cherene Cotter, who was a member of Local 217 for 16 years as she worked for a hotel in Hartford, was in attendance on Tuesday because she likes to continue to support the union.

Originally from Jamaica, she said that she’s been voting for Lamont “since I became a citizen.”

“He stays true to who he is,” she said. “He doesn’t just show up during election time.”