Day 13 of Hilton Bayfront strike; one commuter hopes to move back to San Diego

For the 13th day in a row, hotel workers at the Hilton Bayfront Hotel are walking off the job and hitting the picket lines.

It comes as negotiations continue between the worker's union and the hotel, entering a second consecutive day.

One union member who has to commute from Tijuana, Mexico, for work, hopes the negotiations can bring him back to the city he loves.

Amir Zuniga has a daunting commute, spending nearly six to eight hours getting to and from his home in Mexico to San Diego.

"There are different options you have to manage every day, from traffic to border crossing times, but that's life," Zuniga said.

• RELATED: Negotiations resume as Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel workers strike for 12th day

Zuniga has been a housekeeper at the Hilton Bayfront Hotel for about a year. He started working there because of his connection to the Unite Here Local 30 union.
It's been 13 days since he joined the union's strike, and Zuniga said his decision to strike revolves around one main reason: his desire to move back to San Diego.

Zuniga said he lived in San Diego for years, but during the COVID-19 pandemic, he ran out of jobs and had to move back to Mexico.

Shortly after, he came in touch with Unite Here Local 30, who offered him a chance to start making some money again.

"The union labor had a program where they train you in food and beverage, OSHA relations, etcetera," Zuniga said.

That program landed him the job at the Hilton, but it's also why he spends nearly four hours daily commuting from his family's home in Tijuana to downtown San Diego.

• RELATED: Hilton Bayfront Hotel workers strike for third day as bargaining meeting stalls

"You can see it in my eyes. It's a little bit tiring," Zuniga said.
That is why Zuniga continues to stand behind the union's demands — mainly for better pay.

He hopes the new contract agreement will offer him enough to move back to San Diego and afford him a better quality of life.

"It's empowering. It gets you filled up. You know better days are coming," Zuniga said.

Contract negotiations started on Thursday and will end Friday.

There's no word yet on how Thursday's meeting went; regardless, the union protesters said they'll continue to strike until an agreement has been reached.