Weeks after a strike authorization vote, union hotel workers at Baltimore’s downtown Hilton hotel could not reach an agreement with the company before their contract’s end Thursday.

According to Unite Here Local 7 President Tracy Lingo, “without a deal that works for everybody, a strike is possible at any time.”

Unite Here Local 7 Baltimore chapter officials and members had been in bargaining talks with the city-owned hotel for wage increases and better working conditions comparable to counterparts in nearby cities like Washington and Philadelphia, where they make at least $10 more per hour.

Negotiations have been continuing since November, before the union contract first ended in February but were later extended through August. With no deal in place, workers will begin signing up today for strike benefits and create picket signs as a strike looms large.

Union officials and members will gather at 1800 N. Charles St. this afternoon to discuss why the hotel and members could not reach a deal and the timing of the anticipated strike.

Roughly 200 unionized workers at the Hilton participated in a vote Aug. 9, which passed by 97%, not to extend their contract. They joined thousands of workers across the country who have began strike authorization votes this month at Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and other hotels.

Lingo previously said the lowest-paid workers at the 757-room Hilton — in positions such as housekeepers, dishwashers and banquet staff — make $16.20 an hour. Hotel workers in the District recently bargained for earnings of $33 an hour by the end of their five-year contract. In Philadelphia, about two hours away from Baltimore, workers make about $23 an hour.

Lingo and union members, as well as Courtney Jenkins, president of the Metropolitan Baltimore Central Labor Council, met with City Council members Zeke Cohen and Ryan Dorsey and District 8 council member-elect Paris Gray for a roundtable discussion on Aug. 21.

“One job should be enough. You all should not have to go to the food pantry or work multiple jobs just to make ends meet,” said Cohen, who’s expected to be the city’s next council president.

Last week, Lingo confirmed that negotiations with the hotel company had been successful in the past after a spokesperson with company said the same. But this bargaining round was disappointing, she said.

“We have had good negotiations with them in the past. But until very recently — and we’ve been bargaining since November — I would say they actually came and were ready to actually bargain and attempt to get to a solution,” Lingo said.

“It’s not what you do in the past. It’s what you are doing now that matters,” she added.

Lisa Cole, a spokesperson with Hilton in the Americas, said the company committed to reaching an agreement with the Local 7 chapter, in an Aug. 12 statement.

“Hilton has an established track record of successfully negotiating labor agreements with Unite Here Local 7 and is committed to negotiating in good faith to reach a fair and reasonable agreement that is beneficial to both our valued team members and to our hotels,” Cole wrote.

The Hilton is not the only hotel under contract negotiations in the city. At the Hyatt Regency, another downtown hotel at 300 Light St., another 115 workers are also in bargaining talks. Unite Here Local 7 is also gearing up to take the next steps to represent Hyatt in forthcoming negotiations.