Service workers contribute to California’s tourism, major league sports and entertainment industries by keeping the doors open for business at our state’s top stadiums, arenas and tourist attractions.
Workers at almost all the major sports arenas in California share a proud history with SEIU. The story begins at the Los Angeles Coliseum where USC, UCLA, the LA Rams and the Dodgers used to play. When the Dodgers opened their own stadium in 1962 union workers transferred to
the new park and brought union solidarity with them. There are now about 4,000 workers statewide at such facilities as Dodger Stadium, Staples Center, The Great Western Forum, The Memorial Coliseum and Sports Arena, the Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego and Anaheim Convention Centers, Hollywood Park Casino, Oakland Coliseum, Arco Arena of Sacramento, Anaheim Convention Center, Edison International Field of Anaheim, San Jose Arena and AT&T Park.
The giant theme park opened with all union employees in 1955 and since then the workforce has been divided into three major sectors: entertainment, building and construction and service. USWW, the
Hotel and Restaurant Employees and the United Food and Commercial Workers unions represent the service workers at the Disneyland and at California Adventure. In 1984 all three sectors underwent a major battle to maintain wages and benefits for Disneyland workers. Now more than 2,000 employees at Disneyland and California Adventure are members of USWW.
For more than 50 years racetrack workers have been members of our Local. Jockey valets, janitors, security, ushers, ticket takers and other workers were the first non-janitorial members of the local. They struck for health insurance in the 1960s and were successful. We now represent approximately 1,000 workers at several major racetracks throughout the state including Hollywood Park, Santa Anita, Pomona Fairly and Los Alamitos Race course in the South and Bay Meadows, Golden Gate Fields, and Cal Expo in Northern California.
The people who live in high end condominiums and apartment buildings need quality services provided by USWW members who work as doormen, janitors , grounds and maintenance crews. Residential workers in California have been union for almost 75 years.
County Fairs, theaters, golf courses and bowling alleys are open for business because of the work that USWW members do.
"I'm with USWW because before I had a union I had to work two jobs to make ends meet. By joining with my fellow janitors and forming a union, we won respect on the job and the chance to earn enough to live in California."
"I'm with USWW because I think everyone deserves to be treated fairly. Joining together with other passenger service workers at LAX was the only way that I could have a strong voice on the job and joining together in a union is the only way working people can be strong advocates for themselves."
"I was proud that our security contract campaign also took on the problem of discrimination on the job. Discrimination prevents young black people from getting jobs and keeps them from being able to care for their families. Discrimination is destroying our communities."
"I was a victim of sexual violence while working as a janitor on the night shift. Working with my fellow janitors, we no only won a good contract that had new protections against sexual harassment and sexual violence, but we also passed a bill that extends these protections to all janitors in California. I'm so proud of the work I was able to do"
