LA workers vent ire on streets

LOS ANGELES — Thousands of Los Angeles city employees, including sanitation workers, lifeguards and traffic officers, walked off the job on Tuesday for a 24-hour strike demanding higher wages and alleging unfair labor practices.

It came at a critical time as the US administration of Joe Biden is dealing with a summer of labor unrest, with estimates from national labor unions showing more than 650,000 US workers were on or threatened strikes in the first half of 2023.

Picket lines went up before dawn at Los Angeles International Airport and other locations, and a large rally was held later in the morning downtown at City Hall.

The Service Employees International Union Local 721, or SEIU Local 721, said mechanics, engineers and airport custodians are among the more than 11,000 LA city workers who are striking. SEIU Local 721 represents more than 95,000 workers.

The union said its members voted to authorize the one-day walkout because the city failed to bargain in good faith and engaged in labor practices that restricted employee and union rights.

"City workers are vital to the function of services for millions of Angelenos every day and to our local economy," Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement. "They deserve fair contracts and we have been bargaining in good faith with SEIU 721 since January. The city will always be available to make progress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week."

Strikers said some employees earn so little they can't afford to live near their jobs, sometimes making 160-kilometer commutes.

"You can't work for the city and live in LA," said Marce Dethouars, 54, a sanitation worker who resides east of Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley.

Destiny Webb, a college student who manages a city pool, said she and her fellow marchers downtown were calling for a 40 percent to 50 percent raise and more resources at LA facilities that are poorly staffed.

Surge in strikes

In recent weeks, the United States has experienced an unprecedented surge in union activities and strikes, as workers across multiple industries take matters into their own hands.

The early headline-grabbers were the ongoing dual strike of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists representing about 160,000 actors and workers in television and film and the Writers Guild of America representing about 11,500 screenwriters.

Hollywood actors and writers are currently on strike, and autoworker unions last month warned they are prepared to do the same unless Detroit's Big Three automakers — General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis — agree to fair contracts. Workers at UPS and its Teamsters union just signed a tentative labor deal.

Biden, 80, is tying his 2024 reelection bid to the health of the economy, highlighting job growth, rising wages and easing fears of a recession. Any major strike, especially of a key link in the supply chain or industry, could hurt the Democratic president's pitch, Reuters reported.

Biden's top labor adviser, Celeste Drake, has stepped down, Reuters quoted a source as saying. Drake is leaving the White House to serve as the deputy director-general of the International Labor Organization, based in Geneva, Switzerland, and starts in her new role on Aug 14, according to the source.

At the White House, Drake advised Biden and his team on labor negotiations that had a direct impact on the country's supply chain and the economy, current and former White House officials said.

Even though a majority of the unions involved in the negotiations approved the deal, some workers and labor allies criticized Biden, a staunch union backer, for the contract that increased wages but lacked paid sick leave.

A competitive market for workers, increased job site risks during the pandemic, high housing and food costs, tech disruptions, expiration of cyclical contracts and union-friendly policies from the Biden administration are fueling a workers' rights movement in the country.

Agencies via Xinhua