Unlike the Measure RW campaign, Long Beach City Council can approve these wage increases without voter input.
The latest group to join a historic year in the fight for higher wages and local labor is Long Beach Airport and Convention Center food and retail workers, with a little help from familiar friends.
Last month, local worker’s rights group Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (LAANE) and its campaign group Long Beach for a Just Economy (LBJE) wrapped up over a year of hard work with a victory when voters passed Measure RW.
The measure, which narrowly passed with nearly 53% of yes votes, ensured higher wages for hotel and hospitality workers at establishments with 100 or more rooms.
Following a brief victory lap, it was back to business for LBJE organizers, as the group announced its campaign for higher wages for Long Beach Airport (LGB) and Convention Center concession workers on April 5.
The fight for these 203 workers (87 airport workers and 116 Convention Center workers) follows the trend of investing in those who guarantee the success of Long Beach’s tourism economy, as the industry is one of the city’s most economically prolific sources.
Airport and Convention Center food and retail workers in Long Beach are predominantly women and people of color, Unite Here Local 11 member Maria Kamel told the Signal Tribune.
According to the Long Beach Press-Telegram, Long Beach’s tourism industry made $1.8 billion in 2023, and both the Convention Center and the airport have surpassed their pre-pandemic profits.
“With major world events like FIFA and the Olympics on the horizon, it’s time to follow the mandate set by voters by expanding the living wage to concession workers at the airport and convention center who also make up the backbone of Long Beach’s thriving tourism industry,” said Gabriel Perez, community organizer for LBJE.
Perez said LBJE’s goal is to get the airport and Convention Center worker’s wages passed on the same exact schedule as the workers under RW, beginning July 1.
Dozens of industries saw major strikes and unionization efforts in 2023, including 60 major hotels across the nation. Hotel Maya workers in Long Beach are still negotiating with management on the details of their contract.
The protests were resounded by similar movements in a historic year for labor, accompanied by writers and actors strikes, auto workers strikes, University of California workers strikes, Starbucks and Amazon workers strikes and many more in the past year.
LGB and Convention Center concession workers are represented by Unite Here Local 11, the same union that represents local hotel and hospitality workers.
This group was predetermined as the next up to bat, as LBJE originally intended for them to be included in the Measure RW campaign, Perez said. Since hotel and hospitality worker wages were last established by voters through Measure N in 2012, Long Beach City Council didn’t have the power to raise their wages; only voters could.
This means that — ideally — the fight for a living wage for LGB and Convention Center food and retail workers will be quicker, since the city council can make the decision amongst themselves. While Measure RW required door-to-door campaigning to inform voters, the bulk of the work for this campaign will be ensuring that LBJE and Unite Here Local 11 are on the same page with their requests, then relaying that message to the city council.
Unite Here Local 11 and LBJE are fighting for:
- A minimum wage of $23 by 2024, with $1.50 annual increases capped at $29.50 by 2028.
- Preventing Loopholes in Service Charges, ensuring that workers performing the service are paid fairly and equitably.
- Insuring Compliance: ensuring that wages go into effect according to the agreed upon schedule for all concessionaires.
“We’re trying to go back to the original vision and see it through,” Perez said. “It’s about equity. They’re also a backbone of the tourism industry, so we wanted to go back and realize the original vision and intention.”
Perez also pointed out Long Beach’s $750 investment in infrastructure and projects to prepare for the 2028 Olympics. This includes $50 million towards the Convention Center and $8 million towards the airport.
Long Beach City Council last established a minimum wage and scale for LGB and Convention Center concession workers in 2014, setting the minimum wage at $13.26. Those wages are currently set at $17.36 minimum.
Those who want to support Unite Here Local 11 and the Long Beach Airport and Convention Center workers who are fighting for higher wages should follow @lbjusteconomy and @laane_org on social media to receive updates on when the related city council meetings will take place. Showing up in solidarity of the workers, as well as advocating for them during the public comment period of the items is highly encouraged.
