LAX concession workers strike over wages, heavy workloads
More than 400 LAX concession workers launched a strike Tuesday, Nov. 21 as they lobby for higher wages, affordable healthcare and “humane” workloads.
The employees — represented by Unite Here Local 11 — are employed by a variety of subcontractors through Areas USA as cashiers, fast food attendants, cooks, baristas, servers and bartenders.
The union didn’t say how long the walkout would last, but it does coincide with a busy travel week with an estimated 2.5 million passengers expected to pass through the airport for the Thanksgiving holiday.
The workers’ labor contract expired July 1, 2022, but was extended through Nov. 19, 2023.
They are among thousands of LAX concession employees bargaining for new agreements with employers that include HMS Host, Hudson Group, Concord Collective, Delaware North Co., Crews of California and Jackmont Hospitality.
Steve Duchesne, a spokesman for Miami-based Areas USA, said the company made proposals for higher wages and pension contributions for its workers at LAX, which Unite Here leaders accepted Monday, Nov. 20.
He didn’t say what the proposed wage levels would be but did say that pay increases would be retroactive to July 1, 2022, when the previous labor contract expired. He added that interim wage increases would be in effect as negotiations continue.
“Rather than continue good-faith negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, Unite Here Local 11 leaders ordered workers to the picket line, even intimidating associates who reported for their shifts earlier today,” Duchesne said Tuesday.
Workers employed through Areas USA are primarily looking for wages that would keep pace with the soaring cost of housing in Los Angeles. Many have been forced to move farther away, the union said, because they can’t afford housing where they work.
Employees also say they’re working too hard for the wages they earn.
Clad in red T-shirts bearing the message, “Airport Workers on Strike,” the concession employees converged Tuesday on Terminal 7 with picket signs as travelers moved through the airport.
Royal Bernardez, a single mother who works at a Dunkin’ Donuts at LAX, said she’s barely able to afford food, gas and the $1,200 she pays each month to rent a room in LA on her hourly wage of $18.75.
“We’re asking for $25 an hour,” the 42-year-old employee said. “I’m struggling to get by, along with my two daughters who are 13 and 21. The older one goes to school but isn’t working.”
Duchesne said Areas USA’s offers meet wage and pension demands made by union negotiators and would serve the interests of workers and the value they bring to the airport.
“It is now clear, however, that union leaders are more interested in chasing headlines, disrupting airport operations and inconveniencing travelers during the busiest travel week of the year,” he said.
Unite Here Local 11 has been active in recent months orchestrating a massive strike among 15,000 hotel Southern California workers that began over the July 4th weekend.
The Biltmore Los Angeles, Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites, Loews Hollywood, Laguna Cliffs Marriott and Le Merigot Santa Monica are the only hotels that have reached tentative labor agreements with the union.
Hotel workers have also complained of low wages that don’t allow them to live where they work, as well as working conditions of unhoused refugees who have been hired by hotels during the ongoing strike.