United Airlines' catering workers have voted to join the Unite Here union, officials announced Tuesday.

In an election lasting five weeks, 72 percent of catering workers who cast a ballot voted to unionize. The next step will be negotiating a contract with United.

"This is a landmark moment in our union, representing the largest organizing victory of the year," D. Taylor, president of the Unite Here International Union, said in a news release. "Welcoming workers in United Airlines' catering kitchens into our union will not only change thousands of lives for those individual workers, but it's a tipping point in the airline catering industry."

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Chicago-based United has 2,700 catering workers in five cities across the U.S., with more than 800 in Houston. They're seeking a minimum wage of at least $12 an hour, among other things.

Agape Recella makes $14.71 an hour delivering food from the catering kitchen to the planes at Bush Intercontinental Airport. He learned about the vote while driving to the union office, and he soon after started calling and texting colleagues.

"It's a victory," he said. "It's something that we've all been waiting for."

Recella began pushing for a union in August of last year. He spent hours talking to people, explaining the process and the benefits of joining a union. Personally, he'd like to negotiate a pension, better health insurance, higher wages and equality — being treated the same as the 80 percent of United workers who are union members.

United, which flies 41,500 passengers out of Bush Intercontinental Airport each day, said in a statement that it has a strong track record of working closely with unions.

"We value our relationships with all of our employees, including their union representatives and their collective bargaining agreements," the company said. "United is committed to treating all of our employees with dignity and respect, and the outcome of this election does not change that commitment."

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Employees filed for a union election with the National Mediation Board in January, but the vote was delayed. United had alleged the authorization cards calling for an election to unionize were invalid due to fraud, threats or coercion. United also alleged that employees might not have understood the authorization cards they signed.

The National Mediation Board, however, found that the authorization cards were not tainted.

The union, meanwhile, alleged that the airline's management put up signs in the cafeteria before the vote saying that travel privileges, such as free flights on United, aren't guaranteed should contract negotiations begin. Flat-screen TVs likewise appeared, airing an anti-union video.

Pertaining to signs in the cafeteria, United previously told the Chronicle that it was providing basic facts regarding union representation so employees could make an informed decision.

Unite Here represents 30,000 hospitality workers, including some 18,000 airline catering workers, in the U.S. and Canada.