Inglewood voters to decide on minimum wage increase for some healthcare workers

Inglewood residents have big decisions to make this election cycle when they go to the ballot Nov. 8.

Residents will vote to either return Inglewood city council incumbents Mayor James Butts, and Councilmembers George Dotson and Alex Padilla to another four-year term or shake things up. It’s our opinion that the most vulnerable of the three is Dotson because he is walking in fog similar to President Joe Biden. I have also observed him using taxpayer funded photos, from city events, on his official campaign social media accounts.

But I digress, this article isn’t to rant about the council but to remind voters they have an even more important vote to cast and that’s whether to give SOME Inglewood healthcare workers a raise to $25 per hour. The wage increase would only apply to private healthcare providers.

Yes, that’s a LOT of money and we believe we are all “worth” more than what we earn, but I am old enough to remember the closure of Daniel Freeman hospital due to the lack of revenue coming in from the uninsured.

City employees, including the police department, are all looking for raises because of the incoming assets (SoFi Stadium, YouTube, and possibly the Intuit Dome) but the numbers aren’t showing its the “windfall” the council claimed it would be.

The city lost $7 million in ONE year in Admissions Tax revenue despite the Super Bowl being here. Rising personnel costs for law enforcement pretty much sucks up all the revenue and forces the City to seek other revenue sources (thin parking permit fees, home registration fees, trash increase fees, water increase fees) you get the picture right?

The City can continue to nickel and dime its residents to make up lost revenue, when healthcare providers can’t. Despite the push for Obamacare and insurance for everyone, regardless of whether they are a US citizen or not, healthcare entities lose money when they don’t receive 100% reimbursement for the services they are providing.

If you been to your mailbox lately, or watch a streaming service, you will see commercials airing targeted to Inglewood residents saying “healthcare workers risked everything” during the pandemic.

The “Yes on Measure HC” campaign is running ads showing a barren Inglewood, due to closures related to the pandemic, and proclaim “we still showed up only making $15 / hour”.

ALL essential workers risked everything during the pandemic. Police, fire, front line workers, grocery store workers, and the like.

I know we all remember the “hero pay” the Los Angeles city council voted on to give grocery store workers and the employers responded by closing stores.

My main issue with the ballot measure, as it’s currently written, is its only for SOME healthcare workers in Inglewood not all of them and that’s discriminatory.

Inglewood can’t afford to lose the only hospital we have left. Vote wisely.

VIsit the NO on Measure HC campaign here.

VIsit the YES on Measure HC campaign here.