(Mike DeBonis, The Washington Post) Muriel E. Bowser has tangled with political foes on the D.C. Council dais and, recently, on the campaign trail with fellow mayoral hopefuls. But never, before Tuesday, had the Democratic nominee done battle with a duvet cover. Bowser (endorsed by the Metro Washington Council) spent an hour Tuesday morning in a 10th-floor guest room at the Marriott Marquis hotel downtown, joining housekeeper Juanita King in her daily rounds. She spent a good portion of that time wrangling a comforter into its cover, then again after King noticed a spot, forcing them to start from scratch. Bowser’s housekeeper-for-a-day stint was organized by UNITE HERE Local 25, the union representing employees at the Marriott and numerous other hotels in the Washington area. When Bowser won the union’s endorsement last month, political director Sam Epps said, some of its members invited her to get a first-hand look at their work. Inviting a potential mayor to change sheets and spray down toilets shows “how tedious and hard cleaning rooms is,” Epps said. But it can be rewarding work. As a new hire, King makes $13.53 an hour; by next April, Epps said, she will make $18.80 an hour under the union’s contract, which also includes fully paid health benefits and a retirement plan. “We want elected officials to understand what union jobs can do for people in their lives,” Epps said. “We’re creating middle class jobs here.” Click here for DeBonis' complete report. photo by Mike DeBonis
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