HOW L.A. TOURISM WORKERS WON A $30 MINIMUM WAGE (w/Sonali Kolhatkar)

Zero Hour Senior Correspondent Sonali Kolhatkar reports on a significant labor victory in Los Angeles, where tourism workers won a $30 per hour minimum wage for their industry ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympics. She explained how the workers workers strategically organized over 25 months, using a combination of activism, solidarity, and pressure on the City Council.

This victory is notable for its intersectional impact, benefiting primarily people of color and immigrant workers in the tourism industry, and demonstrates the power of long-term, collaborative organizing across different worker groups.

While $30 per hour is the highest minimum wage in the country, it's still not a living wage in L.A. But this victory shows how targeted, smart organization can shift power back to working people at the local level—no matter who's running things in Washington.

(Thumbnail photo courtesy of UNITE HERE Local 11, which represents over 32,000 cooks, room attendants, dishwashers, airport workers across Southern California and Arizona.)