Living Wage Will Bring Hotel Workers into the Light

By Paul Rosenstein

Most people you see in Santa Monica enjoy the city's blessings of fair weather and fair wages. But this Thursday, a group of people who are not always seen--hotel housekeepers--stood together in public asking for a simple bill of rights. Accompanied by Reverend Ronald Williams of First AME Church and other religious leaders, the women that clean hundreds of rooms at five hotels took their lunch hour to demand reasonable workloads, affordable health insurance and a living wage.

These modest demands bring up an issue that voters must soon decide: the living wage. This issue is familiar to many who consider it one of fundamental fairness for thousands of people who work in a luxury sector but who live in poverty.

In less than eight weeks, voters will have a chance to affirm the living wage ordinance that the City Council passed more than a year ago. A YES vote for Measure JJ will complete a long public effort to make Santa Monica a fair workplace for people who currently don't receive such fair treatment. Many of them work in the city's luxury hotels.

The journey to this decision began back in the 1980s, when Santa Monica decided to build up its tourism industry with public subsidies. Thanks to a careful investment of more than $180 million in taxpayer funds, Santa Monica has become one of the country's premier tourist destinations.

This status is reflected in the phenomenal success and profitability of the city's beach hotels. Tourists from around the world flock to Santa Monica's high-end hotels, paying hundreds of dollars a night. Our beachfront hotels have the best occupancy in the Los Angeles market, and the second highest average room rates.

Hotel workers, however, have not done so well. A city-commissioned study showed that workers were so poorly paid that most qualified for government anti-poverty programs. In human terms, this means that men and women working full-time (and often much more) earn so little that they cannot provide their families with the basic necessities.

The disparity between prosperous businesses and poor workers troubled so many Santa Monicans that they decided to do something about it. Community members, educators, religious leaders and labor organizations joined together to propose a living wage ordinance to the City Council. I am proud to have introduced it. After considerable work, last year the Council passed a carefully crafted, targeted ordinance.

The living wage law is written to help workers AND protect Santa Monica's economy. Only businesses that make $5 million annually or contract with the city will be subject to the ordinance, and even they can apply for a waiver based on economic hardship. It's a smart piece of legislation that balances the interests of working families and businesses.

The city-commissioned study showed that the living wage law will lift workers and their families out of poverty. Another important conclusion of the study was that the living wage ordinance would not harm the local economy, and that hotels could afford to pay it.

The study was independently reviewed by Harvard University Professor Richard Freeman, one of the world's leading economists. He agreed with all of its major findings.

Since public investment created the environment that made the beachfront hotels so profitable, Santa Monica residents might expect the recipients of this investment to act responsibly towards their employees and respect the values of the community. Instead, the hotels have fought back fiercely, spending more than a $1.5 million to defeat the living wage, and launching a deliberately deceptive campaign in 2000 that was overwhelmingly rejected by voters.

It's time for the people of Santa Monica to finish what they started. On November 5, vote YES on Prop JJ - think Jobs with Justice - and guarantee fair wages and benefits for housekeepers, janitors and other workers.

Paul Rosenstein is the former Mayor of Santa Monica.