Striking workers picket this morning at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare in Rosemont. (Alex Garcia/Tribune)

Chicago Hyatt Hotel employees, working without a contract since this time last year, walked off the job Friday at the Hyatt Regency near O’Hare airport, protesting cuts in wages and health care benefits.

The move is part of a coordinated pre-Labor Day strike strategy organized by the national Unite Here labor union that kicked off Thursday with strikes at Hyatt Hotels Corp. properties in Honolulu and Los Angeles. Workers in Boston, Indianapolis and Toronto, among other cities, will also be engaged in protest activities Friday, the union said.

Unite Here spokesperson Annemarie Strassel said the national union is in multiple contract negotiations with the big three hotel companies — Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc., Hilton Worldwide and Hyatt. But it chose to target Hyatt because the Chicago-based chain, which is controlled by the wealthy Pritzker family, has posed “the most regressive proposals.” Get the full story »