Local 217's Josh Stanley: This new contract "respects [workers'] hard work and dedication." Two weeks after going on a four-day strike, unionized Omni hotel workers have ratified a new four-year contract.UNITEHERE Local 217 reached that labor accord with management at the 155 Temple St. hotel on Saturday, according to an email press release sent out by Ian Dunn, a spokesperson for Yale’s clerical and technical workers union, UNITEHERE Local 34.The press release includes few details about the substance of the contract.It states that the union’s 122 members ​“overwhelmingly ratified’ a new contract. Those members will receive first-year wage increases of up to 14.5 percent. And the new contract includes ​“maintained quality union health care and pension plan benefits” for its members. Dunn told the Independent in a follow-up email that the new contract’s term is four years. The union’s previous contract expired last March.“We are thrilled that our members at the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale stood together and secured a contract that respects their hard work and dedication,” Local 217 Secretary-Treasurer Josh Stanley is quoted as saying in the press release.“This new contract will change my life,” Omni room attendant Kadiata Lam is quoted as saying in that same release. ​“For years, we’ve been struggling to make ends meet, working too hard for too little. Now, I can finally start saving for retirement and furnish the new apartment I’m moving into with my daughter. This contract will let my daughter live a better life. It is a huge step forward for all of us, and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved together.”New Haven State Sen. and President Pro Tem Martin Looney sent out a separate email press release Saturday morning, celebrating the new contract. ​“Your perseverance and unity have won wage increases that will improve not just your livelihoods, but the well-being of your families and communities,” Looney is quoted as saying about the hotel’s workers. ​“The agreement with Omni should set a standard for hotels in the New Haven area. This is a powerful reminder that when workers stand together, real progress happens.”The new contract at the Omni comes roughly two weeks after Omni workers staged a four-day strike, which was unanimously authorized in August. More than 120 workers left their job posts — as housekeepers, front desk agents, and cooks, among other roles — during the demonstration. They received the support of state and local politicians alongside other unions, including the Teamsters. Negotiations resumed promptly after the strike ended. The hotel stayed open to guests over the course of the strike, reportedly with the help of temp workers. Saturday’s press release thanks the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service for providing mediation that played a ​“crucial role” in reaching the agreement, ensuring that both the workers and the hotel management were able to come to a ​“fair resolution.”The New Haven Omni labor contract comes several days after unionized workers at the Hyatt Regency Greenwich, also represented by Local 217, ratified a new contract of their own that also promises first-year wage increases of up to 15 percent, among other benefits. And it comes as New Haven native Gwen Mills was elected president of the international union earlier this year.“Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale workers were among 10,000 workers nationwide who went on strike, many of whom participated in short-duration strikes during the Labor Day weekend,” Saturday’s press release states. ​“Although strike issues remain unresolved in other cities, the successful contract negotiations at the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale and the Hyatt Regency Greenwich set a powerful example for other locations, including Baltimore, Boston, Honolulu, and Seattle, where more strikes could begin at any time.”A representative from the hotel’s management did not respond to a request for comment by the publication time of this article.Thomas Breen contributed to this report.