Last night, the Anaheim City Council voted to add a ballot measure to the November election that would force large employers that accept city subsidies, including the Disneyland Resort, to pay a “living wage.”
Both Disneyland cast members and Anaheim employers shared their thoughts with a “divided” City Council before the vote.
Late last week, Orange County officials determined that enough signatures had been gathered to move the initiative along in the process, forcing the City Council to take up the matter.
If ratified, the measure, which was put forth by union representatives, would force affected employers to pay a minimum starting wage of $15 beginning January 1, 2019, increasing $1 an hour per year through 2022. After that, the increases in the required minimum wage would be tied to the cost of living.
The Council could have called for an Environmental Impact Report, but according to Mayor Tom Tait the study would have been a waste time as the consultant would have had just 30 days to complete the study. Tait added, “I think we are better off doing no report rather than a wrong report.”
The Council voted 4 to 3 to forgo the study and put the measure directly on the ballot for the November 3rd election.
Source: Los Angeles Times
