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Workers press council for Olympic wage; commenters urge keeping crossing guards and reinspection of Produce Hotel
Summary
At public comment, airline-catering workers urged the council to adopt an Olympic wage for LAX employees; other speakers warned against replacing crossing guards with officers and asked for inspections at the Produce Hotel over alleged mold, pests and safety issues.
Dozens of public commenters addressed wages, public-safety staffing and housing conditions during the May 9 City Council meeting.
Workers at the airline caterer Flying Food Group asked the council to adopt the proposed Olympic (living) wage for airport workers. Multiple employees described long tenure, low pay and rising costs: "I have a diabetic husband... I paid $3,000 in rent," said Esperanza Montes. Another worker, Lisandro Preza of Unite Here Local 11, said his rent rose $200 this year and urged the council to "vote yes next week" on the wage.
Separately, several speakers—including representatives of Teamsters and parents—urged the council not to eliminate the crossing-guard program. Testimony summarized a Los Angeles Department of Transportation memo proposing replacing some crossing guards with traffic officers; commenters warned this would reduce the number of staffed corners and deprive students of the familiar, local presence crossing guards provide. The Teamsters speaker said past attempts to contract out or change the program were costly and problematic.
Tenants and advocates from the Produce Hotel in Council District 14 said housing conditions in the property remain unsafe despite prior city oversight. Tenants reported mold, roach and rodent infestations and alleged security and assault reports; speakers asked for a new reinspection to be scheduled alongside tenants. "We need tenants to be a part of that inspection," said an LA Community Action Network organizer.
What the council recorded: Public comment concluded before the meeting adjourned; item 1 (a revenue-bond housing matter) was left on the desk due to lack of quorum. The transcript records the comments but does not show council action on the wage, crossing guards or the Produce Hotel during the session.
Why it matters: Wages at airport contractors affect thousands of workers and the local economy; the crossing-guard program touches school safety and traffic enforcement; conditions at the Produce Hotel raise immediate housing-quality and tenant-safety concerns.
