A decision to raise hotel workers’ wages to $25 an hour in Anaheim – and grant greater workplace protections – will go to city voters later this year.
At their regular Tuesday meeting, the City Council’s resort-backed majority voted 5-2 to send a union backed ordinance to voters in a special election on Sept. 12 despite criticism that such elections have much lower voter turnout than general elections.
City council members who supported the September date said it allows voters to focus singularly on the issue.
Ada Briceño, co-president of Unite Here Local 11 that represents scores of Disneyland-area resort workers, said the special election would “spit in the face of democracy.”
“It’s going to be viewed as yet another tax giveaway from your city,” Briceño said during Tuesday’s public comment. “You will be showing Anaheim that once again, they cannot trust their city leaders to resist the demands of this outrageous industry.”
Hotel workers said the proposed ordinance would allow them to afford the increasing rental rates in Southern California.
A majority of council members, along with hoteliers, called it a job killer.
It’s the same argument that resort-friendly officials made against Measure L, a minimum wage measure applied to resort businesses receiving city subsidies.
Like the hotel minimum wage initiative, resort interests opposed Measure L.
After more than 83,000 Anaheim voters decided on the issue, the minimum wage initiative passed by roughly 8 percentage points...
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