UNITE HERE Local 40

What UNITE HERE Local 40 does

UNITE HERE Local 40 is a nonprofit labor union local chartered under the international UNITE HERE union, representing hospitality workers across British Columbia, Canada. Headquartered in Vancouver with a small staff of approximately 6, the union represents 5,000+ members working in hotels, food service, airports (including 1,500+ at YVR), convention venues, and remote resource camps throughout the province. Its core activity is workplace organizing — running certification drives, negotiating collective agreements, and representing members in grievances — alongside political advocacy on affordable housing and workers' rights. Notable recent wins include remedial certifications at Executive Hotel Le Soleil and The EXchange Hotel granted by the BC Labour Relations Board after findings of employer anti-union conduct, and documented wage increases of up to 40% at organized properties such as Cedar Valley Lodge in Kitimat.

The union's revenue model is membership dues paid by represented workers, making it a recurring, dues-funded nonprofit. Its go-to-market is community-led organizing: union organizers recruit worker-leaders via one-on-one conversations, build workplace committees, run public rallies and encampments, and use multi-channel communications (website, social media, email, community canvassing) to mobilize support. Distribution is regional, focused on Metro Vancouver and British Columbia. Local 40 also operates as a political actor, leading the Affordable Housing Now! coalition (which delivered nearly 50,000 petition signatures) and partnering with migrant justice and tenants' rights organizations such as BAYAN BC, Gabriela BC, and the Vancouver Tenants Union, positioning itself at the intersection of labor and housing advocacy in Vancouver.

There is no technology product, platform, or proprietary software underlying the union's operations. Its "product" is labor representation, and its value proposition rests on collective bargaining power, grievance enforcement, and political mobilization rather than any technical or data-driven differentiator.

Name

UNITE HERE Local 40

Legal name

UNITE HERE Local 40

Website

https://uniteherelocal40.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1900

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

UNITE HERE Local 40 is a Vancouver-based nonprofit labor union representing 5,000+ hospitality workers across British Columbia — including hotels, airports, convention venues, and resource camps — through workplace organizing, collective bargaining, and political advocacy on housing and workers' rights.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Vancouver

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Union Membership Dues: UNITE HERE Local 40 generates revenue through membership dues paid by represented hospitality workers. Workers at unionized hotels, food service operations, airports, and resource camps across British Columbia pay dues to maintain union representation and collective bargaining rights.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

UNITE HERE Local 40 is a nonprofit labor union that represents hospitality workers across British Columbia, including hotel, food service, airport, and resource camp employees. The local negotiates collective bargaining agreements, enforces workplace rights through grievance procedures, recruits new members through workplace organizing drives, and advocates for living wages, quality jobs, and affordable housing policies in Vancouver and across the province.

Product overview

UNITE HERE Local 40 is a labor union, not a technology company. It does not offer software products or technology services. The organization provides union representation, worker organizing, collective bargaining, and advocacy services for hospitality workers in British Columbia, including hotels, food service, airports, and resource camps. Their activities focus on organizing campaigns, negotiating collective agreements, and advocating for workers' rights, living wages, and quality jobs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Union Representation and Collective Bargaining

Quantifiable outcome

• Hotel workers at unionized properties win up to 40% pay increases as demonstrated at Cedar Valley Lodge in Kitimat.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• BAYAN BCcoreOthers · 20 July 2026BAYAN BC is a Filipino-Canadian organization that partnered with UNITE HERE Local 40 to host a community teach-in and karaoke event highlighting connections between Vancouver's housing crisis, migrant justice, and workers' rights. The partnership demonstrates the union's commitment to building broad coalitions addressing interconnected social justice issues.
• Gabriela BCcoreOthers · 20 July 2026Gabriela BC, a Filipino women's organization, co-hosted the Day 5 teach-in event with UNITE HERE Local 40, focusing on migrant justice and the disproportionate impact of Canada's housing crisis on migrant workers.
• Vancouver Tenants UnioncoreOthersThe Vancouver Tenants Union is an ally in Local 40's campaigns, particularly regarding affordable housing advocacy. They jointly supported the Myron Manor Tenants Collective fighting displacement of affordable rental housing for hotel development.
• Affordable Housing Now! CampaigncoreOthersThe Affordable Housing Now! Campaign is a coalition led by UNITE HERE Local 40 that coordinates advocacy against luxury hotel development and for affordable housing policies. The campaign delivered nearly 50,000 petition signatures to Council and organized the City Hall encampment in July 2026.
• UNITE HERE International UnioncoreOthersUNITE HERE Local 40 is a local chapter of the UNITE HERE international union, which provides resources, strategic support, and solidarity to the local union in its organizing and bargaining efforts.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• CUPE British Columbia: Canadian Union of Public Employees' BC division, a major provincial labor organization. Comparable as a large BC-based union engaging in political and community coalition advocacy, though focused on public rather than private hospitality sector.
• Teamsters Canada: National labor federation representing transportation, warehouse, and service workers. Comparable in scale, dues-funded model, and use of collective bargaining and political advocacy, but with a broader non-hospitality focus.
• Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Canada: National union representing healthcare, hospitality-adjacent, and building service workers. Comparable in representing low-wage service workers and in operating community-coalition models, though with a different sector mix.

Direct peers

• UNITE HERE Local 11: Large Southern California UNITE HERE local representing hotel, food service, airport, and convention workers. Comparable organizing model, employer mix, and reliance on multi-ethnic coalition campaigns in a high-cost urban market.
• UNITE HERE Canada: National affiliate of UNITE HERE Local 40, coordinating policy, bargaining, and organizing across the Canadian hospitality sector. Directly comparable as the parent body for BC hotel, food service, and airport worker representation.
• UNITE HERE Local 26: Toronto-area UNITE HERE local representing hotel, food service, and airport workers. Closest comparable peer in terms of sector mix (hospitality), union structure (UNITE HERE), and urban Canadian labor-market context.
• BC Federation of Labour: Provincial labor body coordinating 500,000+ BC union members. Comparable as a member-driven advocacy organization operating in the same BC political and labor-law environment, including housing and affordability policy.

Others

• Vancouver Airport Authority (YVR): Operator of Vancouver International Airport, where UNITE HERE Local 40 represents 1,500+ contracted workers. Functions as a key employer/customer counterpart rather than a direct labor-organizing peer, but materially shapes the union's airport organizing strategy.
• Hospitality Industry Association of BC (Hotel Association): Industry association representing BC hotel and hospitality employers. Functions as a counterparty in collective bargaining and labor policy debates; useful comparator for understanding the employer side of UNITE HERE Local 40's organizing terrain.

Emerging players

• UFCW Canada: United Food and Commercial Workers Canada represents food service, retail, and hospitality-adjacent workers. Comparable in representing food-service and contracted hospitality workers in BC and across Canada.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/unitehere40
• Facebookfacebook.com/unitehere40
• Instagraminstagram.com/unitehere40
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/unitehere40

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about UNITE HERE Local 40