53% of Surveyed Workers Cut or Skipped Meals for Lack of Money: Universal Studios Hollywood Workers Take Pay Complaints to the L.A. County Board of Supervisors
Several food-service employees of Universal Studios Hollywood, in Universal City, Los Angeles County, California, testified during the public comment period of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting on October 27, saying chronic understaffing, low pay and unstable scheduling are forcing many park workers to choose between food, medicine and rent, and asking the county to intervene or reach out to the company.
An October 30 report by The Hollywood Reporter again cited a UCLA Labor Center survey of the park's workforce: covering more than 1,300 workers, the survey found an average wage of $17.65 an hour; 53% of respondents had cut the size of meals or skipped meals in the previous year because they lacked money for food, 43% had gone hungry but not eaten for lack of money, 44% worried about being evicted from their homes, about a quarter received food assistance, and 9% described themselves as homeless.
IATSE Local B-192, which represents nearly 4,000 workers at the park, is negotiating a new contract with the company. The union says the theme park business is highly profitable while the company's wage offer amounts to a pay cut after inflation, that some employees already sleep in their cars because they cannot afford rent, and it is demanding wages that keep up with the cost of living and a fair contract. Those statements reflect the union's position.
Universal Studios Hollywood employs more than 6,000 people and is one of the largest theme-park employers in Los Angeles County. With the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics approaching, the course of the park's labor talks is drawing local attention.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：好莱坞环球影城入口的地球仪喷泉。经 Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 3.0。 / The globe fountain at the entrance of Universal Studios Hollywood. Via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
