As Los Angeles anticipates heightened tourism from the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics, a debate has been raging over how the city’s hourly workers in the travel and hospitality industries should be compensated as hotels fight the $30 minimum wage for hospitality workers.

Worker organizations, including hospitality union Unite Here Local 11, have been advocating for a citywide ordinance that would raise hospitality workers’ minimum wage to $30 by July 1, 2028, to accommodate rising costs of living as city hotels and airports serve an influx of tourists.

Though industry associations, including the American Hotel & Lodging Association, opposed it — claiming a higher wage could be disastrous for hotel owners and operators in the city — Mayor Karen Bass signed the Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance, sometimes called the Olympic Wage, into law May 27.

But the fight didn’t end there. Following the law’s passage, an association of hospitality and tourism industry players claims to have collected enough signatures to file a referendum against the ordinance, temporarily suspending its July 1 enforcement. Meanwhile, proponents of increasing the minimum wage have continued to launch efforts pushing back.

As the wage battle continues, Hotel Dive spoke to hotel association leaders, hospitality workers and legal experts about what’s next for the wage fight and the opportunities and challenges for Los Angeles hotels in the years ahead.

An ‘Economic Tsunami’

The Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance mandates set wage increases for tourism and hospitality workers in Los Angeles annually through July 1, 2029, and outlines parameters for determining annual raises in the years after.

“Hotel workers often live paycheck to paycheck and are frequently forced to work two or three jobs to provide food and shelter for their families,” reads the ordinance. “In many instances, they cannot take time to spend with their children or care for themselves or family when sick. They also rely on the public sector as a provider of social support services and, therefore, the City has an interest in promoting an employment environment that protects government resources.”

Read the full article about fair wages for hospitality workers by Noelle Mateer at Hotel Dive.