Workers at Crypto.com Arena Calling on LA28 and IOC to Keep ICE Out During the Olympic Games

As Los Angeles prepares to host the 2028 Olympic Games, workers at Crypto.com Arena took action to demand safe, welcoming Olympic venues free from the sorts of heavy-handed and abusive immigration enforcement that we have seen in Los Angeles and elsewhere in recent months. Workers delivered hundreds of petition signatures from their coworkers urging Crypto.com Arena to call on LA28 and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to commit to keeping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other immigration enforcement agencies out of Olympic venues and events.

“This arena runs because of immigrant workers.” said Marisela Gomez, a Stand Lead at Crypto.com Arena, where she’s worked for 15 years. “The Olympics will only succeed because of immigrant workers. If LA wants to welcome the world, it has to protect the people who make that welcome possible.” 

Aramark Workers At Arizona State University Vote To Go ON STRIKE!

“They deserve wages they can live on, safe and fair working conditions, and the basic dignity every worker is owed,” Beatriz Topete, Organizing Director for the UNITE HERE Local 11 union, said in a press release.

ASU WORKERS VOTE TO AUTHORIZE A STRIKE!

Dining hall and food service workers employed by Aramark at Arizona State University voted 99% to authorize a strike!

Dodger Workers Win Big During World Series!!

We’d like to take a moment to appreciate the workers who create the Dodger Stadium experience! Workers at Dodgers Stadium are the ultimate fans: when games go extra innings, so do workers.
In 2022, Dodgers Stadium workers signed a fantastic union contract with life-changing wages and benefits. And they’re about to enter negotiations for their next contract!

Click here to learn more about what they won in their contract, and why we are Stronger with Local 11!

LA Convention Center Expansion

LA City Council’s final vote on the proposed LA Convention Center Expansion and Modernization passed. We joined a coalition of organized labor, business, and community leaders to rally in front of City Hall in support of the expansion.
“I’ve been doing this job for 15 years, and I’ve served thousands of event attendees. This job matters to me,” said Erika Bowman, Bartender for Compass/Levy at the LA Convention Center and member of UNITE HERE Local 11.

WELCOME TO THE UNION

Congratulations to workers at Desert Diamond Arena, Hudson at Sky Harbor Airport, Talking Stick Resort Amphitheater, Ontario Convention Center, and Toyota Arena workers on joining the union!

COMPASS WORKERS ON STRIKE!

Workers at the DreamWorks Animation Studios Cafeteria Operated by Compass Group Subsidiary went ON STRIKE!! Workers have been fighting for better wages, healthcare, and other benefits since last year.

BREAKING NEWS: VICTORY: Workers at Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center Ratify Life-Changing 3-Year Agreement

Contract includes $12 an hour raise and protections on subcontracting

Long Beach, CA:  UNITE HERE Local 11 members at the  city-owned Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center have overwhelmingly ratified a historic agreement with the LBCEC operator, ASM Global.

“The improvements we won in our contract will help me pay my rent and feed my family. I will be able to take my kids out and enjoy time with my family without worrying about money,” said Jeanelle Cooper, concessions worker of 9 years at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center.

Included in the new agreement are:

  • Enormous wage increases totaling $12 an hour over the three-year agreement. Some workers will see a 65% raise!
  • Free family health insurance.
  • A 400% increase in pension contributions.
  • Strong protections to prevent the exploitation of subcontracted workers, a key sticking point in the negotiations.
  • Extension of contract to soon to be developed amphitheater, Long Beach Bowl.
  • Olympic Expiration Date:  January 15, 2028.  The workers will join 20,000 members whose contracts expire on the eve of the 2028 Olympics.  The LBCEC is scheduled to host events handball, and swimming.

In addition to the life changing wages and benefits, ASM Global also agreed to offer employment to all workers at the temporary staffing agency, 1Fifty1, which was the subject of allegations of potential wage theft which are being investigated by the California Labor Commissioner. ASM Global canceled its contract with 1Fifty1 temporary agency after workers came forward with these allegations. ASM Global has now offered employment to more than 25 former 1Fifty1 workers.  These workers will see their wages increase by 80% during the term of the contract.

“This wasn’t an easy contract to win,” says Andrea Romero, cook of 12 years at the Long Beach Convention & Event Center. “My coworkers and I didn’t have a choice, though. We won fair pay for the hard work that we do and the way we help the tourism industry prosper in Long Beach.”

“Solidarity was the key to this victory. Our members again showed extraordinary courage and unity—they refused to settle until the workers exploited by the temporary agency 1Fifty1 won justice. Now, those workers have the right to permanent jobs and will be covered by this extraordinary contract,” said Kurt Petersen, co-president of UNITE HERE Local 11.

BOYCOTT: Workers at Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center Call for Boycott Amid Growing Labor Issues with ASM and Joint Employer, City of Long Beach

Long Beach: UNITE HERE Local 11 members plan to launch a boycott of the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, owned by the City of Long Beach, until its operator ASM Global and the city agrees to sign a fair contract that ensures that all workers including subcontracted workers earn a living wage and are treated fairly. The boycott calls for tourists and visitors to choose alternatives for events.

The call for a boycott comes after the union filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board last week alleging that ASM Global, the primary company that manages and operates the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, unlawfully called the police on picketing workers in retaliation for their protected activity and surveilled workers who were peacefully exercising their legal rights. The complaint names city manager Tom Modica as a representative of the City of Long Beach, which the complaint alleges is a joint employer of the striking Convention Center employees. ASM was recently purchased by Legends which also manages food and beverage operations at Sofi Stadium and the Los Angeles Coliseum.

For months, workers have been seeking to bargain a successor union contract with fair working conditions, voted to authorize a strike and then picketed the Convention Center during Mayor Rex Richardson’s State of the City & the Long Beach State of the Port last week.

The union also filed a public records request requesting all communications between ASM and City departments, including the Office of City Manager Tom Modica, and documents associated with the Request for Proposals for operation of a temporary amphitheater located adjacent to the Queen Mary. Mayor Rex Richardson announced at the State of the City that Legends & ASM had been “identified as the official operator” for that venue. Long Beach city leaders voted in early January to draft an ordinance to revise the minimum wage in a manner that would strip away the rights of subcontracted workers to be covered by the city’s wage law. Workers and community members are calling on the city to reverse this decision.