The San Diego City Council is expected to vote on an ordinance Tuesday to raise the minimum wage of hospitality workers to $25 an hour.
If the council members pass the ordinance, thousands of workers at hotels with 150 or more guest rooms, Sea World, and event centers like Petco Park would see their paychecks increase starting next year.
The San Diego Tourism Authority said the hospitality industry supported more than 1 in 8 jobs in San Diego last year.
“The workers who generate all of those profits are really struggling to live here in San Diego. Many of them are having to make decisions about whether they're going to pay their rent or buy groceries,” said Brigette Browning, president of UNITE HERE Local 30, a union that represents hotel and food service workers.
Many hospitality workers in the city make about $17.25 an hour, the current minimum wage, she said.
“We think that this will help raise the floor for them. It's certainly still not enough to live in a very expensive region, but I think it will help ease the lives of them and their families,” Browning said.
The proposed wage increases would be phased over four years.
Beginning July 1, 2026, workers at hotels and amusement parks would start earning $19 an hour and workers at event centers would start earning $21.06 an hour.
Wages would increase yearly until both groups begin earning $25 an hour on July 1, 2030.
The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce opposes the ordinance.
“We believe that it's the wrong approach to target a specific industry, especially one that's so vital to our regional economy,” said Chris Cate, president & CEO of the organization that advocates for the region’s businesses.
Cate, a former city council member, said he expects the ordinance to pass. He said it could lead to increases in consumer prices and job cuts.
“The small businesses that are attached to hotels and entertainment centers throughout San Diego are the ones who are going to bear the brunt of this. And that will ultimately be passed on to San Diegans,” Cate said.
The city’s current minimum wage is greater than state and federal minimum wages, but leaders who support the ordinance note it’s not enough to afford San Diego’s high cost of living.
They point to a Massachusetts Institute of Technology Living Wage Calculator that shows a single-person would need to earn over $30 per hour in San Diego County to support themselves while working full-time.
