# Unite Here Local 5

Unite Here Local 5 is a Pension Fund based in Honolulu, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Pension Fund
- **Headquarters:** Honolulu, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Honolulu, HI, United States
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** unitehere5.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/unite-here-local-5

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Unite Here Local 5 represents hospitality workers across Hawaii's hotel and tourism industry. Its affiliate pension vehicle, the Hotel Union & Hotel Industry of Hawaii Pension Plan, operates as a significant institutional investor, channeling member retirement contributions into real estate, private equity, and infrastructure assets. While the fund does not publicly break out asset totals, its posture is inseparable from the labor landscape: the Health & Welfare and Pension Plans function as both a retirement backstop for thousands of union members and a capital base invested in alignment with union interests. The pension plan maintains a strategy centered on buyout-oriented private equity and direct real estate exposure. Its deployment targets assets tied to the hospitality sector and broader commercial real estate, often in Hawaii and gateway markets where Local 5 maintains a presence. Investments are shaped by the Economic and Bargaining Policy of the international parent union, Unite Here, which has historically used pension capital to influence hotel ownership structures and labor standards. The fund prioritizes manager relationships with firms that recognize neutrality agreements and avoid anti-union practices — a sourcing filter that sets its pipeline apart from conventional institutional LPs. Governance sits with a joint board of trustees appointed equally by Local 5 and participating employers under the Taft-Hartley framework. The day-to-day investment strategy is executed under the oversight of the Financial Secretary-Treasurer's office, currently held by Cade Watanabe, who also serves as a key negotiator in statewide labor agreements. Local 5 operates from its headquarters at 1516 S. King Street in Honolulu and participates in benefit-plan conventions through affiliations like the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, while maintaining labor-federation ties with the Hawaii State AFL-CIO and a solidarity agreement with ILWU Local 142 for hotel-sector coordination. The fund's structural differentiator is its enforcement mechanism. Unlike a standard institutional LP that expresses ESG preferences through proxy voting, the Unite Here pension apparatus can coordinate capital allocation with on-the-ground labor actions — strikes, boycotts, and corporate campaigns — applying economic pressure from both the investor and workforce side simultaneously. This dual-track leverage makes the fund a distinct presence in hospitality real estate transactions across Hawaii and beyond.

## Sectors

- Real Estate
- Private Equity
- Infrastructure

## People

- Gemma Weinstein — President
- Cade Watanabe — Financial Secretary-Treasurer

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at Unite Here Local 5's pension fund?

The Hotel Union & Hotel Industry of Hawaii Pension Plan is governed by a joint board of trustees — half appointed by Local 5, half by participating employers — under the Taft-Hartley framework. Day-to-day administration and strategic direction are ultimately overseen by the Financial Secretary-Treasurer's office, currently led by Cade Watanabe, in coordination with the union's president, Gemma Weinstein.

### How does the pension fund source investment opportunities?

The fund sources through a combination of external manager relationships and direct allocations, but with a key filter: it prioritizes general partners and operators that respect card-check neutrality and avoid anti-union practices. This reflects the international union's broader capital strategies program, which uses pension commitments to advance worker-friendly ownership models in hospitality and real estate.

### Is the fund's capital segregated from union operating funds?

Yes. Under federal ERISA and Taft-Hartley rules, the pension and Health & Welfare plan assets are held in trust and legally walled off from Local 5's general treasury and dues-collection accounts. Investment decisions must serve the exclusive benefit of plan participants and beneficiaries.

### What is the relationship between Unite Here Local 5 and the international union's investment strategy?

Local 5 is an affiliate of Unite Here International, which operates a coordinated capital strategies program. While each local's pension fund maintains independent fiduciary governance, they often align on broad policy goals — including using pension capital to support unionized hotel properties, oppose predatory real estate practices, and influence major hospitality employers in their respective markets.

## Related profiles

- [Unite Here Health Staff Pension Plan](https://altss.com/profile/unite-here-health-staff-pension-plan)
- [United Advisors America](https://altss.com/profile/united-advisors-america)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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