NEW YORK CITY — The Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and the Hotel Association of New York City reached an eight-year labor contract on Monday covering about 25,000 hotel workers in New York City. The agreement averted a strike over wages, workloads, and staffing levels that had threatened to disrupt the city before the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The contract establishes 50% wage raises along with free family healthcare, increased pension contributions, new benefit funds, and expanded rights at work. Hotel housekeepers' pay will rise from nearly $40 an hour to more than $61 hourly over the eight years, lifting their earnings above $100,000. The Hotel and Gaming Trades Council represents 27,000 hotel workers, while the Hotel Association of New York City represents 250 hotels.

"Wage increases were our primary focus in this contract cycle because the cost of living for our members has been increasing so dramatically," said Rich Maroko, president of the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council. Vijay Dandapani, president of the Hotel Association of New York City, said his group was proud that the New York hotel industry would continue to provide the best pay and benefits in the country.

Dandapani said a figure of about $200,000 reflected compensation at the end of the agreement, not at the outset. He also said that 20,000 hotel rooms had been lost since the Covid-19 pandemic and that demand had not fully recovered. He added that his group's members were facing exceptionally high taxes.

Hotel owners entered the talks aiming to preserve profitability and argued that New York's lodging market had not fully recovered from the pandemic. Occupancy remains below 2019 levels, and inflation-adjusted room rates have yet to catch up. The deal followed the withdrawal of a proposed city measure that would have limited room attendants' workloads and required double pay beyond certain thresholds; owners estimated the measure could have lifted wage costs by about 40%. Operators said that, despite the added costs from the new pact, they expect tourism demand and major events to support revenue.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the deal was a win for the hospitality industry, the economy, and for a city whose workers can afford to live in it. According to CoStar, New York City has the highest average hotel room rates of any major U.S. city, at about $335 per night, and the nation's highest hotel occupancy rate.

Eight games are scheduled for the New York City area during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, including the final at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium. The United States will cohost the tournament with Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19. Under New York City law, guests have the right to cancel their hotel reservations and receive a full refund in the event of a strike.