Anaheim, California, Measure L, Hospitality Industry Minimum Wage Initiative (November 2018)
| Measure L: Anaheim Hospitality Industry Minimum Wage Initiative |
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| The basics |
| Election date: |
| November 6, 2018 |
| Status: |
 Approved
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| Topic: |
| Local wages and pay |
| Related articles |
| Local wages and pay on the ballot November 6, 2018 ballot measures in California Orange County, California ballot measures Local wages and pay on the ballot Local business regulation on the ballot |
| See also |
| Anaheim, California |
An initiative to increase the minimum wage requirement for certain hospitality industry employers was on the ballot for Anaheim voters in Orange County, California, on November 6, 2018. It was approved.
| A yes vote was a vote in favor of requiring hospitality industry businesses that receive city subsidies to incrementally increase pay for minimum wage employees to $18 an hour by 2022. |
| A no vote was a vote against requiring hospitality industry businesses that receive city subsidies to incrementally increase pay for minimum wage employees to $18 an hour by 2022. |
Election results
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Anaheim Measure L |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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45,237 | 54.20% | ||
| No | 38,229 | 45.80% | ||
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- Results are officially certified.
- Source
Measure design
As of June 2018, all employers in Anaheim with more than 25 employees were required to pay a minimum wage of $11 an hour. Measure L was designed to require hospitality employers that receive city subsidies to pay a minimum wage of $15 an hour, effective January 1, 2019, and to increase the minimum wage by $1 each year through January 1, 2022.
At the time the initiative was certified for the ballot, Anaheim's largest hospitality employer to receive subsidies was Disneyland Resort. The initiative specifically stated that the wage increase was designed to apply to businesses in the Anaheim or Disneyland Resort Specific Plan Zones.[1] However, the Anaheim City Council voted unanimously to end tax incentives for Disneyland Resort on August 28, 2018, following a written request from Disneyland Resort President Josh D’Amaro.[2] The Los Angeles Times reported that it was unclear as of November 12, 2018, whether Disney Resort would be required to adopt the wage increase.[3]
Wage increases under Measure L were scheduled as follows:[4]
- $15 on and after January 1, 2019
- $16 on and after January 1, 2020
- $17 on and after January 1, 2021
- $18 on and after January 1, 2022
- Adjusted for the cost of living on and after January 1, 2023
In addition to raising the minimum wage, the initiative was designed to prohibit employers from offsetting wages with tips. The initiative stated, "Tips or gratuities received by Employees, service charges or commissions and extra pay as lead workers or for special assignments or night work shall not be credited as being any part of or offset against the wage rates required by this section."[4]
Under Measure L, a small business could apply for an exemption if compliance would be likely to "reduce its workforce by more than 20 percent, to curtail its Employees' total work hours by more than 30 percent, to close its business or to seek protection from its creditors under federal or state law." A business would be able to apply for an exemption with the city manager's office, and appeals could be made within 14 days of receiving a decision from the city manager.[4]
Text of measure
Ballot question
The ballot question was as follows:[5]
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Shall the initiative ordinance to increase the minimum wage payable by hospitality industry employers located in the Anaheim or Disneyland Resort Specific Plan Zones that have tax rebate agreements with the City, and to require that service charges imposed by such employers be paid entirely to employees, be adopted?[6] |
” |
Impartial analysis
The following impartial analysis was prepared by the office of the Anaheim City Attorney:[5]
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Overview: Measure L was placed on the ballot by a petition signed by the requisite number of voters. If passed, the measure would require specified hospitality employers who have 25 or more employees to pay their employees no less than $15/hour beginning January 1, 2019, increasing yearly by one dollar per hour through 2022, when the minimum wage under the measure would be $18/hour. Beginning in 2023, the minimum wage would increase annually by the greater of 2%, or the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (“CPI”). Comparatively, should the measure fail, then such employers would continue to be required to pay no less than the higher of the federal or state minimum wage, which is scheduled to be $12/hour in 2019, increasing yearly by one dollar per hour through 2022, when the California minimum wage will be $15/hour. Beginning in 2023, the California minimum wage will increase annually based on the CPI. Service Charges: Covered employers would also be required to pay the entirety of all service charges to the employee(s) performing services for the customer who pays the service charge. No part of a service charge could be paid to managerial or supervisory employees. Employers Covered: The measure would apply to any for‐profit business that is a hotel, motel, amusement or theme park, or any retail store, restaurant, or other venue offering food or beverages, that is within or adjacent to a hotel, motel, or amusement or theme park and that: (1) is located in whole or in part within the Disneyland or Anaheim Resort Specific Plan Zones, (2) has an agreement to receive a tax rebate from the City, or is a hospitality industry contractor or tenant of an entity that has such an agreement, and (3) has 25 or more employees. Exemptions: Employers with fewer than 100 full‐time employees could seek an annual exemption from the City by showing that paying the higher minimum wage would cause them to either reduce their workforce by more than 20%, cut their employees’ total work hours by more than 30%, close their business, or seek bankruptcy protection. Enforcement: The measure delegates enforcement to the Anaheim City Manager. An employee may also bring an individual or class action lawsuit against an employer, and would be entitled to attorneys’ fees if the employee prevails. Employers would be prohibited from retaliating against employees asserting their rights under the measure. Effective Date: The measure would become effective 10 days after the vote is declared. Summary: A "yes" vote would require specified hospitality employers in the Disneyland or Anaheim Resort Specific Plan Zones to pay a minimum wage of $15/hour beginning on January 1, 2019, increasing yearly thereafter, and to approve the service charge requirement described above. A "no" vote would not impose a higher minimum wage on those employers, who would instead continue to be required to pay the higher of the federal or state minimum wage, which will be $12/hour beginning on January 1, 2019, increasing yearly thereafter.[6] |
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| —Anaheim City Attorney | ||
Full text
Read the full text of the initiative here.
Noteworthy events
City votes to end subsidies for Disneyland Resort
The Anaheim City Council voted unanimously to end tax incentives for Disneyland Resort on August 28, 2018. Walt Disney Co. had requested that the city end incentives that were previously designed to fund hotel construction and other expansions at Disneyland Resort and Disney California Adventure Park.[2]
The minimum wage initiative was designed to apply to businesses receiving city subsidies.
Disneyland Resort agreement with Master Services Council
Unions represented by the Coalition of Labor Unions—the group responsible for the initiative's signature campaign—entered into a three-year contract with Disneyland Resort on July 26, 2018, to raise the minimum wage for represented employees to $13.25 for the remainder of the year and to $15 in 2019. The deal was approved by the Master Services Council, representing 9,700 employees. Under the agreement, employees already at or above the minimum wage would receive an annual 3 percent wage increase. Andrew Hagelshaw, a spokesman for the Services Employees International Union (SEIU)—one of the unions represented in the contract—stated that the deal did not affect the union's support for the minimum wage initiative.[7][8]
Support
Proponents
- The Coalition of Labor Resort Unions led the initiative petition campaign to place the measure on the ballot.
- Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders (I) supported the initiative.[9]
Arguments
- Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders made the following argument during a rally in Anaheim in support of increasing the minimum wage for Disneyland workers on June 2, 2018:[9]
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We are talking about a company that has received huge tax breaks from the tax payers here in Anaheim, but in addition to that, received over $1 billion in tax breaks from Trump's tax giveaway to the wealthy. ... Disney cannot be a company which forces its employees into part-time work when they need and deserve a full-time job. Disney has got to understand that its employees are not teenagers; that the vast majority of employees here are workers, many with families.[6] |
” |
| —Bernie Sanders | ||
Opposition
Opponents
- The group No on the Anaheim Job Killer Initiative - No on Measure L, a project of the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce led the campaign in opposition to the measure. The group described itself on its Facebook page as "a project of the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce" with "committee major funding from Disney [and] Wincome USA."[10] The group had reported $397,000 in monetary contributions to the campaign and $392,071.19 in expenditures as of October 30, 2018.[11]
- Anaheim Chamber of Commerce President Todd Ament opposed Measure L.[9]
Arguments
- The group NO on the Anaheim Job Killer Initiative made the following argument on its Facebook page:[10]
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Wincome Group, which has the Westin Anaheim Resort already under construction, said that they would likely cancel a second four-diamond hotel in Anaheim if the Job Killer Initiative passes. And most troubling of all, Disney, with $2 billion in current investment planned for Anaheim, confirmed they are in talks with neighboring Garden Grove for future hotel and other developments because of the business and political climate in Anaheim. For Anaheim residents, this means the loss of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars of future revenue to support vital city services. And it proves that proponents of this measure are lying to residents and workers when they claim there is no downside to kicking your biggest investors in the face.[6] |
” |
- Anaheim Chamber of Commerce President Todd Ament made the following argument in opposition to the initiative:[9]
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In Anaheim, we’ve had great success in creating a lot of jobs through some great policies. This policy, if passed by the voters in Anaheim, would actually kill jobs and chase away investment from this market.[6] |
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| —Todd Ament, Anaheim Chamber of Commerce president | ||
Background
California minimum wage
The California State Legislature approved Senate Bill 3 in March 2016 to increase the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2022. Proponents of competing minimum wage initiatives withdrew their measures from the ballot after Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed Senate Bill 3 into law on April 4, 2016.
Path to the ballot
The Coalition of Labor Resort Unions, composed of 11 unions, submitted signatures for the initiative petition to the city clerk on May 1, 2018. The Orange County Registrar of Voters verified on June 13, 2018, that the coalition had collected at least the minimum requirement of 13,185 valid signatures—equal to 10 percent of the city's voters. On June 19, 2018, the Anaheim City Council voted 4-3 to place the initiative on the November ballot, rejecting the option to adopt the initiative or to order an impact report.[12][13]
