The State : Contract Spurs Yosemite Rush

Tourists flocked to Yosemite National Park after park concession workers overwhelmingly approved a new labor contract. The ratification vote eliminated the threat of a strike by hundreds of hotel, recreational, custodial and retail workers in the park during the usually busy Easter Week. Union members voted 301 to 14 to accept the new, three-year contract with Yosemite Park and Curry Co. The pact includes a 10.5% wage increase over three years along with improved health care benefits and improved housing benefits. “Once people heard there was a tentative agreement, a lot of them decided to come to the park for Easter,” said park spokeswoman Mallory Smith.