General (2)
Susana Barrios
From:Merrily Kutner <merrilyjk+gmail.com@advocateslink.com>
Sent:Sunday, October
To:Public Comment
Subject:\[EXTERNAL\] Order a Special Election - Hotel Worker Initiative
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Dear Anaheim City Council,
On June 13 you will consider an ordinance which would drastically impact hotels throughout the City of Anaheim. While
promoted by UNITE HERE Local 11 as a measure to increase hotel worker safety, this poorly drafted proposal contains
wage and work rules requirements that would devastate Anaheim hotels, with ripple effects that would gut Anaheim’s
budget.
A majority of the council was correct to reject outright adoption at its May 16 meeting and instead direct an economic
impact study. We urge adoption to be rejected again. Instead, the City Council should place this matter on the ballot for
the people to decide in a special election later this year.
As a matter of policy, the hotel proposal written by UNITE HERE Local 11 would be a disaster.
Imposing the proposed wage and work rules on Anaheim hotels would be a costly new mandate. Many workers who
were supposed to benefit will likely see their hours reduced or their jobs eliminated. Larger hotels will raise their prices
for rooms, amenities, and services, resulting in fewer hotel stays and less tax revenue for the city. Smaller hotels,
including family owned “mom and pop” hotels, will likely just go out of business.
The increased costs of doing business in Anaheim overall will make it tougher for Anaheim to attract and retain the big
trade shows and conventions, like NAMM and Natural Products, and make it tougher for families and tourists to justify
the costs of a vacation to the Anaheim Resort.
Those increased costs could also result in a chilling effect on economic development throughout Anaheim, but especially
where tourism matters most: in the Anaheim Resort. Tourism developments, including new hotels, could slow down or
be canceled outright because no business will want to make a significant investment in a city where costs are going to
skyrocket.
From a practical standpoint, the proposal’s 10-day implementation window is one that would be impossible to meet
during the December 2024 holiday rush, which is exactly what hotels would be faced with if the measure was
successful in the November 2024 General Election. If passed in a special election, the measure would at least be
somewhat less difficult for some hotels to implement within 10 days.
We hope that it will not come to this, however.
Once the voters of Anaheim learn how the UNITE HERE Local 11 measure will devastate the city’s finances, and threaten
the ability of you, the City Council, to properly fund services such as libraries, parks and recreation, street maintenance,
and police and fire protection, they will reject this measure. The City Council should give the voters that opportunity by
placing it on the ballot in a special election.
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When city staff present you with the findings of its economic impact research, the consequences of the proposed
ordinance will be clear. It is imperative that voters be able to have their say as quickly as possible. We cannot wait until
November 2024. Please: Order a special election.
Merrily Kutner
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