Ringo Mak – 22 years – Food Server – Hilton Union Square

Ringo Mak has worked at the Hilton Union Square for 22 years as a bellman, room service attendant, and breakfast server at the hotel’s restaurant, the Urban Tavern.

Ringo was born and raised in Hong Kong, where his parents and six siblings owned a newspaper stand in the financial district.  Although his life there was secure, Ringo decided to immigrate to the United States in the hopes of something better.  “I could only think about a better future for my next generation,” he says.

On arriving in California, Ringo found work at the Hilton Union Square as a bellman.  After several years of the difficult work, however, he injured his back and was forced to transfer to room service.  Of the change in job he says, “I thought it would be easier to handle because I thought it would be less lifting of baggage.”  Ringo settled in the Bay Area and got married.  He and his wife have one daughter Stephanie.

Despite his many years of service, Ringo was temporarily laid off due to the economic recession.  He has managed to get a part time job working as a breakfast server at the Urban Tavern, where he now works anywhere from two to five days a week.  He worries about keeping his job.  “They’re still trying to limit the workers,” he says, “so we’ll see what happens.”

As difficult as his path has been, Ringo credits UNITE HERE Local 2 with standing up for the rights of himself and his coworkers and providing hotel workers with job security and benefits.  In his experience, “If you find anything is not fair, you can complain.  You file a grievance and the union will help you get the right thing done.”  He knows that the strength of the union comes from himself and his coworkers.  When Ringo joined 850 of his coworkers in a three-day strike last spring, he said, “For months now we’ve been sending the message that we’re not going to let this company squeeze us any harder.  By walking out today, we’re showing Hilton just how committed we are.”

Ringo’s belief in the power of the union and his commitment to winning a fair contract for his coworkers goes so far that he volunteers his time every week to work on the boycott.  In his work making phone calls to hotel customers, distributing leaflets on the picket-line, and leading delegations, Ringo exemplifies the strength of solidarity and the tenacity of San Francisco hotel workers.  “We are willing to fight and sacrifice to call upon what’s right and to protect our own benefits,” he says.

After waiting ten years for their visa to be approved, Ringo and his wife are now looking to the future.  Their daughter is currently a senior at Cornell University and will soon graduate and pursue a career as an architect.  Looking back, Ringo says of himself and his wife, “We are so grateful, and we think we made the right decision.”

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