A coalition of Virginia groups have formed the raise the wage coalition Virginia in support of House Bill 395. The bill proposes to increase the minimum wage from $7 to $15 by the year 2023. According to deputy political director at Unite Here local 25, Lenace Edwards, “this bill is stronger than previous proposals because it has a faster time frame and avoids regionalism , to help all low-wage workers in the state at the same time.” “Folks have talked about bringing certain districts or areas, phasing them in at a different time, right?” “ That’s unacceptable and would set a dangerous precedent.” Members of Raise the Wage coalition say that workers have not received the same economic boom as businesses, who rank highly in the state.
Fairfax County Times: campaign celebrates food industry
The 1969 slogan, “Virginia is for lovers”, is being re-purposed in efforts to promote the restaurant industry. The Virginia Restaurant, Lodging and Travel Association wants to recognize the role of the restaurant industry in VA, that represents the ninth largest industry in the state. Simultaneously, the restaurant industry continues to add to the economy and local community with providing critical resources such as events, legislation to industry members and workforce development.
The Washington Post: D.C. hearing reveals broad support for legalizing short-term rentals in residential areas
This past Thursday, at the D.C. Zoning Commission hearing, adversaries Airbnb and the District’s hotel industry agreed on relaxing the zoning code in the meanwhile as the short-term rentals law is in the works to become enacted. Currently, of the estimated 9,000 short-term rentals operating in the area, 90 percent of them in residential areas are illegal because of the current zoning regulations that prohibit them.
The Washington Post: Housing advocates push for more aggressive rent-control measures in D.C.
In Sept, D.C. council signed off to extend the 1985 rent control law until Dec. 2030, which allows annual rent increases by landlords. Fearing a higher rate of gentrification in the city, a coalition of 17 groups, unveiled "The Reclaim Rent Control" campaign. This campaign, seeks to expand rent control laws in four ways listed below:
● Cap annual rent increases at the rate of inflation by eliminating the extra 2 percent allowed under the current law.
● Make small, four-unit apartment buildings and all buildings built before 2005 subject to rent control.
● Make new units subject to rent control after 15 years.
● Cut the minimum number of properties landlords must own before they are subject to rent-control provisions and eliminate what are known as “vacancy increases,” which allow landlords to increase the rent of a unit when it is vacated by the previous tenant.
According to a National Community Reinvestment Coalition, out of any other city in the country, D.C. had the greatest "Intensity of Gentrification". To be exact, between 2000 and 2013, 40% of the District's lower-income neighborhoods experienced gentrification. Further research found that over 20,000 African Americans were displaced during that time from their neighborhoods by affluent, White outsiders. Unite Here Local 25 representative, Benjy Cannon, states “Our members live in D.C., and even with the strong wages and benefits we’ve been able to secure for them, staying in the city is still really, really difficult and really, really expensive,” “It’s so important to have a diverse cross-section of groups pushing for this because issues of inequality, racism, housing, poverty, employment — they’re all interconnected.”
WAMU: Transit Advocates Say That A Lack Of Late-Night Options Is Hurting Workers
A nationwide scarcity of late-night transit options is taking a toll on workers and businesses that operate outside of the traditional 9-to-5 schedule. Insufficient public transportation options forces employees to rely on more expensive means to get to and from work. Instead of paying only 3% of their income, a security guard making roughly $14 an hour may have to pay close to half of their income leasing a car and 31% of that income to afford gas.
DC-ist-WAMU: Coalition to rally in support of stronger rent control laws this weekend
At a time when widespread immigration raids are commonly occurring, two major hotel chains with headquarters in D.C. have announced that they will not permit federal immigration enforcement agencies to utilize their hotel rooms as detention centers for immigration families due to a shortage of space in traditional detention centers.
WAMU: MGM Grand National Harbor Workers Worried New Ownership Will Cost Jobs
The MGM Grand National Harbor is one of the top-grossing casinos for its parent company MGM Resorts International. But union employees are concerned that changes to its ownership structure could result in downsizing at the casino.
In a precautionary move, union workers gave public testimony Thursday asking Maryland’s Gaming Commission to increase regulation on hedge funds seeking stakes in casinos. Union workers are worried that MGM’s new relationship with hedge funds Corvex Capital and Lands & Buildings could influence staffing levels at the National Harbor casino.
Washington Post: Metro to subsidize Uber & Lyft fares to fill late-night service gap
UNITE HERE Local 25, a hospitality union representing about 7,500 workers in the D.C. region, seized on the Metro plan as a “PR stunt.”
“Local 25 is deeply skeptical of [Metro’s] reported plan to subsidize ride-sharing instead of reinstating extended service hours,” the union said in a statement. “That [Metro’s] plan essentially proposes to privatize a part of our public transportation infrastructure in the process only adds insult to injury.”
Curbed: D.C. Council gives final approval to Airbnb regulations
D.C. residents who use Airbnb or similar booking services to rent out their homes will likely have to abide by new regulations starting next October, when they are set to go into effect. The policies represent the first time the city has charted comprehensive laws for short-term rental units—an effort that has sparked a fierce debate spanning roughly the past two years.
Jaffe Report: Winners and Losers in the DC Election
“John Boardman and Dyana Forester: The District’s unions went head to head with the developers and the business community in the at-large race — and beat them badly. Boardman’s UniteHere Local 25 of the Hotel Workers union put feet on the ground for Silverman, along with Forester’s United Food and Commercial Workers Local 400. Service employees (SEIU) and the Laborers union backed Silverman as well. In the coming political and policy battles, the unions put themselves in position to push around the business side, thanks to their support of Silverman.”
The Washington City Paper: The Line Hotel in Adams Morgan Draws Scrutiny Over D.C. Job Numbers
The D.C. First Source program was created to provide D.C. residents with job opportunities generated by development. However, the Department of Employee Services failed to effectively implement 80 percent of the law. Its failure is painful to say the least. One in every five D.C. residents lives in endemic poverty, while one in four children suffer from poverty.
NBC Washington: Downtown DC Residents Beg for Relief From Street Musician Noise
WAMU: District Wharf Phase II Faces Challenge From Labor Unions
Four labor unions oppose the development of phase II of the District Wharf development, arguing that it will perpetuate inequality and price out District families. The second phase will include mixed use buildings, waterfront piers and new public parking spaces. The unions will make their case on Nov. 6 and Nov. 9 at the D.C. Zoning Commission hearings
The Washington Post: Tourism is booming in the nation’s capital. So why aren’t hotel jobs?
Independent: Millionaire groped Washington hotel maid on visit for Donald Trump's inauguration
On January 19, millionaire John Joseph Boswell was a guest at the Mayflower hotel in downtown D.C, where he sexually assaulted a maid in his room. Boswell was in town to celebrate the inauguration of Donald Trump, when he took his celebrations too far by approaching the maid from behind and rubbing her buttocks as she made his bed .
The Washington Post: Workers at Trump’s Washington hotel vote to join union, casting spotlight on potential conflicts
Last Week around 40 housekeepers and guest-room workers at the Trump International Hotel Washington voted to join Unite Here Local 25. This is the first major unionization vote of Trump-company workers following Trump’s inauguration. This is not however the first time Unite Here has been affiliated with the Trump Company, in December the company reached negotiations With Unite Here Nevada to offer new benefits to employees at his Las Vegas hotel. Although Unite Here was not apart of Trump’s union talks early on, in the coming months another 80 Trump hotel workers are expected to vote on union membership.
The union marched during the Women’s March in Las Vegas the day after Trump’s inauguration, saying in a statement, “We will fight and ensure that all people who make this country great have a seat at the table.” John Boardman, executive secretary and treasurer of the Unite Here’s D.C. affiliate, said 95 percent of Trump housekeepers and guest-room workers voted to join the union, which will push to adopt the same benefits and protections offered to workers at other downtown Washington hotels.The union will serve as the workers’ bargaining agent with the Trump company, said Boardman, who expects contract negotiations to begin “very soon.” He said he thinks the company “would like to reach an agreement” and that negotiations would end fairly quickly. The union, Boardman said, hopes to cover Trump hotel workers under a broader multi-hotel agreement providing for pension plan increases and raises for workers, with housekeepers and dishwashers’ annual income rising to $52,000 by the end of the five-year contract.
The Washingtonian: DC Has More Airbnb Listings Per Capita Than NY or LA
The Washington Business Journal: Adams Morgan hotel project opposed by hotel workers union.
The Washington Post: Nearly a year in, Marriott Marquis says job training program has worked
Last May the Marriott Marquis opened with $206 million in public subsidies and a promise that the majority of their staff would be residents of D.C. 10 months later they have a 77 percent retention rate among residents of D.C. who had been hired through their training program and a rate of 28 percent for hourly workers who were graduates of the training program.
The Washington Post: Marriott to urge guests to tip their housekeepers as part of new campaign
Beginning this week, the initiative, called “The Envelope Please”, will begin providing envelopes in Marriott hotel rooms to encourage guests to tip the workers. To ensure that the tip goes to the person cleaning the room for the night, The American Hotel and Lodging Association suggests tipping between $1 and $5 to housekeepers.