The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will quickly contemplate a proposal requiring resort and theme park employees in unincorporated areas to be paid no less than $25 an hour, rising to $30 an hour by 2028, when the Summer time Olympics might be held in Los Angeles.
Chair Janice Hahn, who proposed the movement at Tuesday’s board assembly, mentioned too many employers are paying their employees low wages, which exacerbates poverty, homelessness and housing insecurity.
On the similar time, hoteliers profit from county investments in seashores and parks, attracting vacationers to the area, and theme parks profit from particular zoning privileges, giving the county a vested curiosity in how their employees are paid, Hahn mentioned.
The measure would apply to workers of Common Studios Hollywood and Six Flags Magic Mountain, and other people working at resorts with greater than 60 rooms.
If handed, the county ordinance would additionally require all service costs to be paid to employees.
“A $25 minimal wage, up from the present minimal wage of $16.90, wouldn’t make these employees wealthy, however it will make their lives a bit simpler and should imply that they don’t have to work a number of jobs simply to remain of their properties,” Hahn mentioned.
The supervisors will contemplate the movement at their Sept. 12 assembly.
If Hahn’s movement passes, county employees will draft the Tourism Employee Retention Minimal Wage Ordinance in 45 days. The supervisors would then vote on the ordinance. It was unclear how quickly the ordinance would go into impact if handed.
Hahn mentioned the movement, co-authored by Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath, is much like proposals being thought-about in Los Angeles and Lengthy Seaside — some extent that business leaders rapidly fired again on.
Heather Rozman, president and chief govt of the Resort Assn. of Los Angeles, mentioned Hahn’s “copy and paste” lawmaking was unhealthy public coverage.
The board ought to full an financial impression evaluation, like cities with related proposals, earlier than transferring ahead, Rozman mentioned.
“Perhaps the supervisors pays their county employees a minimal wage of $25 an hour first,” Rozman mentioned in an announcement. “It’s disappointing that one particular curiosity is proposing ordinances by the Los Angeles area that may have a devastating impression on small enterprise and native authorities tax income. As a substitute of specializing in a small share of employees, leaders on this area ought to develop a holistic resolution to our affordability disaster that may profit all.”
Sabrina Demayo Lockhart, govt director of the California Points of interest and Parks Assn., mentioned her group had solely simply seen the proposal.
“We welcome the supervisor’s invitation to interact all stakeholders,” Lockhart mentioned in an announcement.
A minimum of a number of the “large improve in wages” might be handed on to shoppers, though particularly at theme parks, shoppers are already offended about latest worth jumps, mentioned Martin Lewison, a theme park professional and affiliate professor of enterprise administration at Farmingdale State School in New York.
That’s why extra theme park corporations need to center America to construct theme parks for shoppers who don’t have cash to drive or fly to the coasts for a Disney or Common attraction, he mentioned.
“Each of these industries have been proof against wage will increase for a very long time,” Lewison mentioned. “In some methods, that is justice for employees who you possibly can argue have been underpaid, traditionally, and so I actually see the way it is perhaps standard politically to make such a proposal.”
Common worker Danny Bernardo advised the supervisors Tuesday it’s a widespread false impression that theme park employees usually are younger folks searching for seasonal work, when many have labored at parks for many years. But many are paid barely greater than minimal wage, regardless of their years of service, Bernardo mentioned.
Many have second and third jobs, typically full-time employment elsewhere, and are on public advantages, face evictions and even skip meals, he mentioned.
“These aren’t simply tales — these are the experiences of myself, my brothers and sisters and kin,” mentioned Bernardo, an Amusement Space Workers Union B-192 member. “To satisfy the price of residing, lots of our employees are solely working and never residing.”
Occasions employees author Hugo Martín contributed to this report.
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