SFO food workers walk off the job leaving travelers scrambling for snacks

SAN FRANCISCO -- Hundreds of unionized food workers walked off their jobs Monday, leading to shuttered restaurants, bars, coffee shops and lounges at San Francisco International Airport.

Airport officials issued an apology to the thousands of travelers who would be streaming through the airport on Monday.

"Staffing at newsstands is not currently affected, and these outlets will continue to offer grab-and-go food and beverages," officials said in an email. "Full-service meal availability may be limited. SFO apologizes for any inconvenience this causes."

The strike is being staged by the nearly 1,000 members of UNITE HERE Local 2 who work at the airport as part of a wage dispute.

 Union leaders said the majority of their membership makes in the neighborhood of $17.05 per hour and have not seen a raise in three years.

"I have to work two jobs to support my family and meet our needs, and it means I barely get to see my kids and grandkids," said Vivian Narvarte, who works at both Pie Five Pizza and Ladle & Leaf Restaurant at SFO. "My pay for a whole hour of work is less than the price of just one meal. That is so unfair. I'm on strike because I want to quit my second job and have more time with my family."  

The open-ended strike includes cashiers, baristas, cooks, dishwashers, bartenders, servers and lounge attendants with 30 different employers at 84 food and beverage outlets throughout the airport.    

"Nobody can pay their bills or feed their kids on $17 an hour," Anand Singh, President of UNITE HERE Local 2, said. "Working at SFO used to mean you had a good job, but most of the airport's fast-food workers haven't seen a raise in three years. The hamburger or burrito an airport worker serves often costs more than what she makes in an entire hour."

Airport food service workers voted by 99.7 percent to authorize the strike through a vote held in August