CalTravel Joins Coalition Supporting Resilient Tourism Economy in Los Angeles Area
By CalTravel - June 29, 2023
California Travel Association (CalTravel) has joined statewide associations CalChamber, California Hotel and Lodging Association, California Restaurant Association, California Retail Association, California Business Roundtable, and others to oppose a Los Angeles city proposal to increase the minimum wage for hospitality workers to $30 per hour by 2028.
The coalition, called The Alliance for Economic Fairness, is being led by the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.
The coalition is urging Los Angeles city policy leaders to engage in constructive dialogue with stakeholders to find a solution that supports workers, protects jobs, and supports a resilient tourism economy in the city of Los Angeles.
The proposed increase would add to the city’s ongoing cost-of-living crisis affecting all workers, small businesses, families, and the community. The increase also targets our industry, which is just now recovering from the pandemic.
The state minimum wage went to $15.50/hour on January 1. Some Los Angeles area minimum wages, however, are already set to increase starting July 1 to levels ranging from $16.78/hour (Los Angeles city) to $19.08/hour (West Hollywood).
The Los Angeles city ordinance seeks to increase the minimum wage for hotel workers and workers at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to $25 per hour in 2023, with yearly increases of $1 until the minimum wage reaches $30 per hour in 2028.
Projected losses of nearly 15,000 jobs as a result of that ordinance would extend far beyond the hospitality industry and risk $55 million in local tax revenue that funds key priorities like homelessness services.
A June 8 Oxford Economics study commissioned by the Los Angeles Area Chamber found that the $30 Wage Ordinance would lead to the loss of approximately 14,870 jobs across the Los Angeles economy and a $1.1 billion decrease in visitor spending.
The construction sector, an important source of jobs for union workers, would be hard-hit, with more than 2,000 jobs at risk due to reduced hotel construction spending.
$169 million in state and local tax revenue is at risk, including $55 million in local tax revenue, which directly funds essential public services like fighting homelessness, public safety, education, and other social safety net initiatives — just as the city is facing future budget deficits.
