Christina Lee, Head Photography Editor

Hospitality employees at the Omni hotel will return to work on Monday morning, ending their four-day strike without settling a new contract.

The workers, represented by UNITE HERE Local 217, had been picketing outside the hotel’s Temple Street entrance since Thursday morning after the Omni’s management failed to meet the union’s Wednesday night deadline to agree on a contract. Contract negotiations have been ongoing since November 2023, and the hotel’s last contract with its over 120 unionized housekeepers, front desk agents, cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders and bellmen expired in March.

Two union leaders told the News on Sunday night that the hotel employees would return to work the next morning, and that contract negotiations would continue the coming week.

“The strike of the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale has been an awesome display of unity and courage,” Local 217 secretary-treasurer Josh Stanley wrote in a statement. “We will return to work Monday morning and will continue to negotiate with the Omni this week.”

The News was not able to reach Omni management for comment after the union announced the strike’s conclusion. On Thursday, when the strike began, Omni Hotels and Resorts released a statement declining to comment on the status of negotiations but affirming its commitment to bargaining in “good faith” to reach a satisfactory contract.

Omni’s Thursday statement also noted that the hotel had plans to make sure guests’ experiences were minimally affected by the work stoppage.

“Unfortunately, as has occurred recently in other markets, the union has determined that a strike is in its interest,” Omni Hotels and Resorts wrote in the Thursday statement. “In view of this labor action, the Hotel has put in place plans to ensure services are not interrupted and that our guests will continue to experience the genuine hospitality, personalized service and elevated experiences that are the hallmark of the Omni New Haven Hotel.”

Ian Dunn, an organizer with UNITE HERE, told the News on Sunday that negotiations between the union and the hotel will continue this week, but he declined to say whether negotiations were ongoing during the strike or whether the union was contacted by management at any point during the work stoppage.

“We’re going to go back to negotiating this week and hope that we win a good contract,” Dunn said. “Not just hope, we’re going to keep fighting.”

The four-day strike featured appearances from myriad local politicians, including Board of Alders President Tyisha Walker-Myers, Mayor Justin Elicker, Gov. Ned Lamont, Rep. Rosa DeLauro and both Connecticut senators. Other appearances included the Teamsters and other unions and Scabby the rat, the inflatable mascot of the labor movement.

The Omni is planning to host an event with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who will promote her new book with DeLauro, on Sept. 22.

The Omni Hotel in New Haven was built in 1997.