Workers serving international airlines speak out for the first time alongside labor and community leaders hosted by Holman United Methodist Church
LOS ANGELES, CA — This week, airline catering workers employed by Flying Food Group at Los Angeles International Airport publicly shared their experiences before a Truth Commission composed of community leaders at Holman United Methodist Church.
Over several hours of often emotional testimony testimony before the Commission, more than a dozen Flying Food Group workers and advocates described unsafe conditions, wage theft and poverty wages, sexual harassment, labor violations, and retaliation for speaking out.
Flying Food Group workers are responsible for preparing and packaging meals and beverages for international airlines including Japan Airlines, ANA, Lufthansa, and Air France—serving thousands of passengers traveling through LAX each day. Despite playing a critical role in global travel, many workers say their voices have long gone unheard.
Many workers described safety hazards, including a number than were the subject of citations from the state’s enforcement agency, Cal/OSHA.
“Water mixed with bleach splashed into my eyes, and I felt a severe burning sensation. I reported the incident to my supervisor, who told me to go to the restroom to wash my eyes, because the designated eyewash station was completely blocked by flight carts and, furthermore, did not contain the specialized water required for eye irrigation. My doctor told me that I could have gone blind if it had reached my cornea,” said Sonia Ceron, dishwasher at Flying Food Group for 8 years. “Flying Food Group is a company that does not value us; we deserve to feel safe. I hope that you, the commissioners, can hear us.”
Over the last several years, five different government agencies have issued citations or complaints against Flying Food Group for labor or safety violations. These include six citations by the City of Los Angeles for violations of the airport minimum wage by it or its staffing agencies; six citations by Cal/OSHA for violations of workplace safety rules; 10 citations by California Highway Patrol for operating heavy trucks without proper licenses and other issues; a citation by the California Labor Commissioner for violating the state’s post-Covid right-to-return-to–work law; and a complaint by the National Labor Relations Board for violating federal labor laws through threats, surveillance, interrogations and retaliation. These citations and other complaints were presented to the Truth Commission over the course of the hearing.
Commissioners included Yvonne Wheeler, President of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor; Rev. William Smart Jr, President and CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Southern California; Frank Lima, General Secretary-Treasurer of the International Association of Fire Fighters; Kevin Riley, Director of the UCLA Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program; Will Mitchell, District Director for California State Assembly District 61. Assemblymember Tina McKinnor; and Chloe Osmer, Executive Director of the Maintenance Cooperation Trust Fund, and leading authority on workers rights and wage theft.
Truth Commissioner Yvonne Wheeler, said: “I call on the City of Los Angeles not to renew the license of Flying Food Group. Get somebody else in. Through it all these workers showed their strength. Their fight is not just about one workplace.
It’s about respect. It’s about dignity, it’s about justice, for all working people.”
Truth Commissioner Rev. William Smart Jr, said, “ We cannot just hear a scared story, a scared story calls you into action, we are called into action today! The Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Southern California will walk with you and fight with you and be there for you!”
Truth Commissioner Kevin Riley said “What I saw in this room are workers demanding what the law already guarantees them and striving to hold an employer accountable to their legal responsibilities. You are sounding an important alarm — so that we don’t end up with our own Triangle Shirtwaist disaster. I applaud your courage in speaking out, and I stand with you in your efforts.”
Truth Commissioner Will Mitchell, said, ”What happens at LAX doesn’t stay at LAX, it reflects the standards we are willing to accept for workers across California. Your voices have been heard and will be taken very seriously by Assemblymember McKinnor and her office.”
Truth Commissioner Chloe Osmer, said “We heard today from workers at Flying Food Group about the devastating impact of wage theft on their lives. We heard from workers about repeated violations by Flying Food Group of the Living Wage Ordinance in LA. It’s called Living Wage for a reason, because you can’t live on less.”
BMO Stadium Workers Ratify Their Second Union Contract
Launching New Contract Negotiations at SOFI Stadium
Workers at SoFi Stadium started negotiating their new contract. One of the demands is that FIFA—for the security of workers and fans alike—keeps ICE out the stadium during the upcoming World Cup games.
Victory at the Anaheim Hilton
Over at the Anaheim Hilton the company was holding on to the server’s and bartender’s cash tips and adding them to their paychecks every two weeks. But those tips belonged to the workers who should have access to the money the moment they are tipped. The workers took it to arbitration and won the right to keep their tips and not have to wait two weeks before receiving the money. Sí se pudo!
Disney Negotiations Update
Once again workers at Disney and the company met to discuss various proposals, including an economic proposal. Stay tuned for further details!
PRESS ADVISORY: Coalition to Release “LA28 Files” Raising Questions About Leadership, Governance, and Transparency
PRESS ADVISORY: April 18, 2026
PRESS CONTACT: Maria Hernandez | 623-340-8047 | [email protected]
ON SITE: Nick Stewart-Bloch | 323-760-2458
Fair Games Coalition To Protest LACMA Opening, Demand Accountability from LA28 Chair Casey Wasserman
Coalition to Release “LA28 Files” Raising Questions About Leadership, Governance, and Transparency
WHO: Fair Games Coalition members to flyer and banner outside LACMA’s David Geffen Galleries grand opening calling on LACMA Board member & Chairperson and President of LA28 Casey Wasserman
WHAT: Educate the public and inform eventgoers about LACMA and LA28 leadership and unveil LA28 Files.
WHEN: Saturday April 18, 2026 | 5pm-8pm
WHERE: LACMA 5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Los Angeles: Nearly 20 years in the making and $720 million dollars later, the LACMA David Geffen Galleries will be opening soon. Several LA28 Board members sit on the LACMA Board, including LA28 President and Chairperson Casey Wasserman, billionaire owner of the Milwaukee Brewers Mark Attanasio, and co-founder of the soon-to-open Lucas Museum of Narrative Art Mellody Hobson. Members of the Fair Games coalition made up of community advocates, workers, housing and immigration organizations will gather to raise urgent questions about leadership, governance, and transparency surrounding the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games (LA28).
The protest will highlight recently surfaced revelations about LA28 Chairperson Casey Wasserman, including reported connections between LA28 leadership and influential political and business figures, as well as broader questions about accountability in publicly connected institutions overseeing the Games. The Coalition will release the “LA28 Files” — a new report documenting these concerns and calling for greater transparency from an organization managing billions in public-connected resources.
The Fair Games coalition has called on Casey Wasserman to resign. Last December, the Fair Games Coalition – including UNITE HERE Local 11, LAANE, CLUE and dozens of labor, community and immigrant rights groups— was the first to call on Casey Wasserman to resign as Chair of LA28 after LA28 appointed Trump acolytes Kevin McCarthy, Diane Hendricks, Reince Priebus, Patrick Dumont, and Ken Moelis to its board. The coalition also condemned Wasserman’s kowtowing to Trump on security, undermining confidence in the Games’ independence and integrity.
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The Fair Games Coalition is composed of more than 100 organizations including unions, community groups, housing advocates, and immigration leaders.
PRESS RELEASE: Airline Catering Workers Testify at Public Truth Commission on Working Conditions at LAX Facility
Workers serving international airlines speak out for the first time alongside labor and community leaders hosted by Holman United Methodist Church
Over several hours of often emotional testimony testimony before the Commission, more than a dozen Flying Food Group workers and advocates described unsafe conditions, wage theft and poverty wages, sexual harassment, labor violations, and retaliation for speaking out.
Flying Food Group workers are responsible for preparing and packaging meals and beverages for international airlines including Japan Airlines, ANA, Lufthansa, and Air France—serving thousands of passengers traveling through LAX each day. Despite playing a critical role in global travel, many workers say their voices have long gone unheard.
“Water mixed with bleach splashed into my eyes, and I felt a severe burning sensation. I reported the incident to my supervisor, who told me to go to the restroom to wash my eyes, because the designated eyewash station was completely blocked by flight carts and, furthermore, did not contain the specialized water required for eye irrigation. My doctor told me that I could have gone blind if it had reached my cornea,” said Sonia Ceron, dishwasher at Flying Food Group for 8 years. “Flying Food Group is a company that does not value us; we deserve to feel safe. I hope that you, the commissioners, can hear us.”
Truth Commissioner Kevin Riley said “What I saw in this room are workers demanding what the law already guarantees them and striving to hold an employer accountable to their legal responsibilities. You are sounding an important alarm — so that we don’t end up with our own Triangle Shirtwaist disaster. I applaud your courage in speaking out, and I stand with you in your efforts.”
Truth Commissioner Chloe Osmer, said “We heard today from workers at Flying Food Group about the devastating impact of wage theft on their lives. We heard from workers about repeated violations by Flying Food Group of the Living Wage Ordinance in LA. It’s called Living Wage for a reason, because you can’t live on less.”
New York Times: Infantino and FIFA discuss asking President Trump for moratorium on World Cup ICE raids
FIFA received strike threats from thousands of workers at SoFi Stadium, the tournament’s host venue in Los Angeles… with ICE topping the list of concerns outlined by the local union as it negotiates a new bargaining agreement. The advocacy group Human Rights Watch last week also called on FIFA to “seek a public guarantee from federal authorities to refrain from immigration enforcement at games and venues.”
The Flying Food Group Truth Commission
Senator Mark Kelly Joins ASU Workers at the Picket Line
REUTERS: SoFi Stadium workers urge FIFA to bar ICE from World Cup, threaten strike