We are the workers, residents, and business owners of Los Angeles. We are proud of our City, and we believe that our people make us who we are. We support efforts by the City Council and Mayor to address wage issues, and we believe that the right way to do that is with one fair wage for the entire City: One city, One wage.

Los Angeles should have one fair minimum wage that treats all workers equally and fairly. But on July 1, a new ordinance went into effect that addresses the needs of workers in just one local industry, hotels, for a separate wage policy. With that action, there are now at least four different minimum wage rates for Los Angeles workers, depending on where they work. This means labor unions can actually pay their members a lower wage than non-unionized workers, continuing the economic disparity that a city-wide wage increase is attempting to erase. We believe that this is wrong, and that there is no good reason to treat any Los Angeles worker differently from another.

When the City raises the minimum wage, all workers should move ahead and no segment of the Los Angeles economy should be carved out for separate treatment.

That is why we appeal to the City of Los Angeles to pass an inclusive wage policy that treats all workers and businesses equally and fairly. Los Angeles should be one city with one fair wage.