Hotel workers in Los Angeles go on strike
Why it matters
Workers across Southern California in various industries have threatened to strike or have been fired in recent months, demonstrating an unusual degree of solidarity with other unions pushing for higher wages and better working conditions.
Longshoremen disrupted operations in the colossal ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach for weeks until they reached a tentative agreement in June. And screenwriters have been protesting outside the gates of Hollywood studios for about two months now.
Hugo Soto-Martinez, a Los Angeles City Council member who worked as an organizer for Unite Here Local 11, said the wide range of industries mired in labor disputes demonstrates frustration, especially among younger workers, who have seen inequality rise and opportunities watched it evaporate.
“It’s homelessness, it’s the cost of housing,” he said. “I think people understand those issues in a much more tangible way.”
The hotel workers’ strike comes just as the summer tourism season gets underway, and union leaders say they hope to capitalize on that momentum.
Last year, tourism in the city reached its highest level since the coronavirus pandemic. according to to the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board. About 46 million people visited it, and there was $34.5 billion in total business sales by 2022, surpassing 91 percent of the 2019 record.
But for many workers, like Diana Rios-Sanchez, who works as a housekeeper at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown, wages haven’t helped keep up with inflation.
She often wonders how long she and her three children, who live in a one-bedroom apartment in El Sereno, a neighborhood on the east side of Los Angeles, can afford to stay in the city.
“All we do in hotels is work and work and get by on very little,” Ms. Rios-Sanchez said. “We take care of the tourists, but no one takes care of us.”
Business groups say simply requiring employers to pay workers more does not address the much deeper issues that have led to skyrocketing costs of living in California.
Background
The union has been negotiating a new contract since April. In June, members approved a strike.
The group has asked that hourly wages, now $20 and $25 for housekeepers, be increased immediately by $5, followed by $3 increases in each subsequent year of a three-year contract.
In contrast, Mr. Grossman said the hotels had offered to raise wages for housekeepers who currently earn $25 an hour in Beverly Hills and downtown Los Angeles to more than $31 an hour by January 2027.
On Thursday, the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites, a major hotel in downtown Los Angeles, announced it had prevented a strike by its employees with a contract agreement.
Agreements made this year will set pay levels ahead of the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics, which are expected to have huge tourism appeal to the region.
What’s next
The Hotel Association of Los Angeles said in a statement that the hotels will be able to serve visitors throughout the weekend. The employees will quit their jobs until a deal is reached.