Breakthrough Agreement for Uganda's Hotel/Tourism Workers

Posted to the IUF website 01-Oct-2008

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The Uganda Hotels, Food, Tourism & Allied Workers' Union (UHFTAWU) has signed a national collective bargaining agreement with the country's Hotel Owners' Association which, for the first time, applies to all Association members.

The struggle for a nationwide agreement has been a union priority since 2001, involving tough conflicts and court battles against some of the leading hotels. The campaign gathered momentum in 2006, when the IUF and other unions backed the fight for union recognition in the hotel sector as a condition for Uganda's hosting of the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

Pressure finally resulted in a recognition agreement signed in May this year, but employer resistance had still to be overcome for the CBA to be signed in August. The agreement applies to over 150 establishments and brings the union some 20,000 new members.