ANAHEIM, Calif.—The Walt Disney Co. reached a tentative contract agreement July 23 with four unions
representing about 9,700 workers at Disneyland and its surrounding businesses—but are now likely to lock horns over a union-backed “living wage” initiative that will be on the city’s Nov. 6 ballot. The measure would require all hospitality businesses that receive city tax subsidies—including Disney, which is getting about $267 million over 20 years to build a luxury hotel—to pay employees at least $15 an hour, going up to $18 in 2022. “The contract was for the workers in the resort, and the initiative’s impact is citywide,” Denise Anderson, a bargaining committee member with the SEIU-United Service Workers West, told the Los Angeles Times. A business coalition that includes Disneyland and the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce has called the measure “the Anaheim Job Killer Initiative,” and the developer of another luxury hotel getting tax breaks said it is forcing it to “reconsider” building a second hotel. Union members voted on the contract July 26. If the initiative passes, union leaders said, some members might see bigger raises, and it definitely would increase pay for nonunion workers at Disneyland and nearby hotels. Read more
