Service employees will be returning to work under the tentative agreement announced on Dec. 8. (photo courtesy of the Beverly Hilton)

Hundreds of housekeepers, cooks, dishwashers, servers and front desk workers have returned to work after the Beverly Hilton and UNITE HERE Local 11 reached a tentative agreement following a lengthy labor dispute.

“This new contract will allow me to spend more time with my kids, and retire with dignity. I am proud of all my coworkers for sticking together, and we will make sure our sisters and brothers in other Beverly Hills hotels get the same,” said Ana Cortez, a housekeeper at the Beverly Hilton.

Under the agreement, the workers at Beverly Hilton will receive wage increases that keep pace with the soaring cost of housing, affordable family health care, humane workloads and safe staffing, and improved pension increases. The contract also included historic equal justice language that, among other things, will help to provide access to union jobs for formerly incarcerated individuals and unprecedented protections for immigrant workers.

The Beverly Hilton is the first hotel in Beverly Hills and the sixth overall to reach a tentative agreement with UNITE HERE Local 11.

“Hotel workers at the Beverly Hilton are eager to kick off the awards season now that Hollywood is back in full swing because they have a contract with a living wage,” said Kurt Petersen, co-president of UNITE HERE Local 11. “The Beverly Hilton is a leader in Beverly Hills, and we challenge the Fairmont Century Plaza and Beverly Wilshire to quickly follow suit.”

UNITE HERE Local 11 represents more than 32,000 hospitality workers in Southern California and Arizona.