The city of Anaheim is holding a special election today, where voters will decide whether or not the minimum wage for hotel workers and event caterers will be raised to $25.
The union-backed initiative, called “Measure A,” is the only item on the ballot today, and voters can cast their ballots by mail, via ballot box, or in person at the polls until 8 o’clock tonight.
As well as a higher minimum wage, hotel workers would also receive increased safety measures and workload restrictions if Anaheim decides to vote “yes” in today’s election.
Sponsored by the hospitality workers’ union, Unite Here! Local 11, Measure A is officially supported by local hotel housekeepers. Voters reading the initiative will see overly burdensome room cleaning quotas, unexpected and mandatory overtime and economically restrictive wages cited as some of the reasons for the measure.
Standing in opposition are the Anaheim County Council, Police Association and Anaheim Family YMCA, to name a few, who argue that the measure would have a negative impact on small businesses and increase the local cost of living.
The hotel lobby has also been out in full force, opposing the measure through a “Vote No” campaign. Disney, which has a huge presence in Anaheim’s hospitality industry, is a top funder of the committee to “Vote No on Measure A.”
Some members of the community have taken to social media to express their opinions on the measure, and also on the election itself.
One resident, Linda Lo, asked in a Facebook comment how much taxpayer money is being used to hold the special election, and why the ballot measure wasn’t added to the ballot for the next election cycle.
The City Municipal Government has periodically been responding to concerned community members, saying that the special election is costing about $1.5 million and is happening today, rather than in 2024, because of the “potential impact that it will have on the city’s budget directly, and to the city’s larger economy.”
For Annenberg Media, I’m Estelle Atkinson.
Photo courtesy of Sam Howzit / CC BY 2.0