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Measure N: Voters Approve $13 Wage And Benefits For Long Beach Hotel Workers
The Long Beach Business Journal ^ | November 20, 2012 | Joshua H. Silavent

Posted on 11/19/2012 10:07:51 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

Long Beach voters took to the polls on Election Day and overwhelmingly cast their support for a living wage (or minimum wage, depending on choice of terminology) of $13 per hour for workers in the city’s largest hotels. The earliest the law would likely take effect is December 21.

“In terms of what message voters sent . . . it affirms that the City of Long Beach was ready to really look at how quality of life issues matter, regardless of what level of employment or which sector you work in,” Councilmember Suja Lowenthal told the Business Journal.

As of November 13, more than 73,500 voters agreed compared with nearly 43,200 who said ‘no’ to Measure N. Moreover, the ballot measure passed in all nine city council districts (as of press time, several thousand ballots remained uncounted by the Los Angeles County Registrar of Voters office).

“You say raise the minimum wage and people agree with that,” Leigh Shelton, spokesperson for UNITE HERE Local 11, the union responsible for Measure N’s appearance on this year’s ballot, told the Business Journal. She noted that voters in the cities of San Jose and Albuquerque, New Mexico, also passed minimum wage ordinances November 6 of $10 and $8.50 per hour, respectively. The minimum wage across the Golden State is $8 an hour.

But the Long Beach measure is unique because it does not apply to all workers in the city, but rather only to workers in hotels with 100 rooms or more.

Measure N also imposes a mandatory 2 percent annual increase in pay regardless of job performance or economic climate, guarantees five paid sick days per year and assures that workers receive 100 percent of guest services charges, such as mandatory gratuities attached to room service...

(Excerpt) Read more at lbbusinessjournal.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Government; Local News; Travel
KEYWORDS: california; economy; idiots; insanity; mandatorygratuities; minimumwage; tips
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No wonder they're going down the drain.
1 posted on 11/19/2012 10:07:59 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

100% tip mandated by law! Nice! Not!


2 posted on 11/19/2012 10:12:22 PM PST by Thebaddog (Obama won, we lost)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

You can vote for a minimum wage for a private company’s employees?


3 posted on 11/19/2012 10:16:01 PM PST by oldbrowser (Welcome to U.S.Zimbabwe)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

How does someone live on $13 a hour in Long Beach, California. I find it shocking the hotels were paying less than this.


4 posted on 11/19/2012 10:16:34 PM PST by gunsequalfreedom (Conservative is not a label of convenience. It is a guide to your actions.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I am confused.
Does the city own these hotels? Are they public property?
How does a local government get involved in such issues?


5 posted on 11/19/2012 10:18:26 PM PST by AlexW
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To: oldbrowser
Its California, maybe the government already confiscated the hotels for the collective.

It's Norman Rockwell's America verses the Borg.

6 posted on 11/19/2012 10:20:09 PM PST by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Two results of this.

1. Rise in unemployment in the hotel industry.
2. More hotels with 99 rooms or less.


7 posted on 11/19/2012 10:30:21 PM PST by Sergio (An object at rest cannot be stopped! - The Evil Midnight Bomber What Bombs at Midnight)
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To: gunsequalfreedom

Worth reading the entire article. Hotels with unions are exempt from this law, and most union workers are making less than the wage set by this new law.

Under this law, hotels will be encouraged to recognize a union to get a lower wage. The unions would get monthly dues from the hapless maids.

Sounds like one big scam.


8 posted on 11/19/2012 10:32:34 PM PST by Arthurio
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To: AlexW

I’m a lawyer familiar with these issues, and I’m pretty confused on this measure. I thought that in order to impose something like this, they needed a “hook” of some sort such as public funds. Maybe not.


9 posted on 11/19/2012 10:33:58 PM PST by Behind the Blue Wall
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To: AlexW

Why does the Federal government mandate that an employer has to pay someone $7.25 an hour? How is that their business?


10 posted on 11/19/2012 10:35:19 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass.)
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To: Behind the Blue Wall

In California cities have the ability to impose minimum wages ... or outright union power grabs like this, too.


11 posted on 11/19/2012 10:38:57 PM PST by only1percent
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I now see any hotel with 110 rooms gaining 11 broom and linen closets.


12 posted on 11/19/2012 10:48:01 PM PST by barmag25
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Economic illiterates. EVERY single small and medium sized business owner I know in the OC (the most conservative and economically viable part of California) is making plans to leave and take their businesses to points South, esp. Texas. Mostly over Prop 30.

This includes me.

We’re talking hundreds of millions of dollars in revenues. Gone by March.

The idiots who voted for this don’t matter. There won’t be much of a viable hotel business left in Southern California in 9 months...


13 posted on 11/19/2012 10:53:57 PM PST by piytar (The predator-class is furious that their prey are shooting back.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

“Why does the Federal government mandate that an employer has to pay someone $7.25 an hour? How is that their business?”
___________________________________

I understand your point, but this is a different issue.


14 posted on 11/19/2012 10:54:10 PM PST by AlexW
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To: oldbrowser

WTF? Why stop at $13 per hour? Why not make it $50 per hour? Not like the “locals” will be paying for hotels anyway.


15 posted on 11/19/2012 11:02:08 PM PST by boop ("I need another Cutty Sark"-LBJ)
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To: Arthurio

thanks I will read it. still 13 dollars an hour is really low for somebody trying to live in Long Beach California


16 posted on 11/19/2012 11:02:49 PM PST by gunsequalfreedom (Conservative is not a label of convenience. It is a guide to your actions.)
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To: gunsequalfreedom

Irrelevant. Every attempt to screw around with the free market has resulted with unintended but predictable bad results.


17 posted on 11/19/2012 11:32:46 PM PST by winner3000
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To: gunsequalfreedom

Irrelevant. Every attempt to screw around with the free market has resulted with unintended but predictable bad results.


18 posted on 11/19/2012 11:33:11 PM PST by winner3000
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To: Arthurio

Sounds like extortion to me.


19 posted on 11/19/2012 11:50:26 PM PST by skr (May God confound the enemy)
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To: piytar

I’m sure we’d welcome them here in Denton, as long as they don’t try to make this another California.


20 posted on 11/20/2012 12:00:24 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet (You cannot invade the mainland United States. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass.)
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