Los Angeles’ minimum wage hike would cover airport and hotel workers. / Allen Rodriguez-Unsplash
What you probably already know: There’s a contentious and somewhat ugly battle happening in Los Angeles over raising the minimum wage for hotel and airport workers. In May, the Los Angeles City Council, on a 12-3 vote, passed an ordinance gradually raising the minimum wage for hotel and airport workers to $30 an hour by 2028, just in time for the Los Angeles Olympics and Paralympics. The ordinance also called for hotel and airport workers to receive a new $8.35 per hour health care payment beginning in July 2026. Opponents, led by hotel trade groups and airlines, launched a successful referendum petition against it, and the Los Angeles City clerk confirmed it had enough signatures (140,000, or almost 50,000 more than necessary) to move forward. If the Los Angeles County clerk verifies the identity of the signatures, the minimum wage would remain $21.01 this year, and the amendments would be paused until a citywide election in November 2026.
Why is it necessary? Los Angeles City Commissioner Hugo Soto-Martinez says on his official city website that the ordinance targeting tourism workers was first introduced two years ago, but things have changed significantly since then. An independent study says the wage hike would lead to an estimated 6,300 new jobs and an additional $1.2 billion to the region’s GDP because of workers’ increased spending power. “No more choosing between seeing a doctor and putting food on the table,” Soto-Martinez wrote, noting that it takes more than $30 per hour to afford a one-bedroom apartment in the city “without being rent burdened.” The cost of living across the U.S. has also risen 6% since 2023. “Despite soaring inflation and record corporate profits, low-wage workers were iced out. Not anymore.”
What it means: The ordinance has generated heated debate and widespread controversy. Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) vehemently oppose the legislation. The AHLA says the city’s tourism industry is already struggling with a 70% decline in Canadian tourists and a 13% drop in international travel. In a letter to Mayor Karen Bass, AHLA President and CEO Rosanna Maietta said occupancy rates would dip below existing 10-year lows; as many as 15,000 tourism workers would lose their jobs; and more than $342 million in new hotel developments would be derailed. Tourism generates about $40 billion annually for the local economy.
What happens now? Proponents, including United Here Local 11 — the union representing more than 32,000 workers in Southern California and Arizona — accused petition organizers of misleading and fraudulent tactics, and launched a public education campaign urging voters to contact L.A. city officials. Petitioners — led by the LA Alliance for Tourism, Jobs and Progress, a group funded by Delta, United and the AHLA — deny any wrongdoing and say they’re confident they have enough valid signatures to overturn the legislation. While the Los Angeles County clerk has yet to issue a final ruling, it appears that this won’t be decided until the 2026 elections.