LOS ANGELES – A five-member City Council committee Tuesday advanced a motion that intends to extend worker protections for fast food employees.
In a 4-0 vote, the Economic Development and Jobs Committee approved the motion, which aims to provide fast food workers with more stable scheduling, paid time off, among other benefits. It would also mandate a six- hour paid training period to educate these workers on their rights.
Councilman Adrin Nazarian, a member of the committee, was absent during the vote.
The motion now heads to the City Council for a vote. If approved, council members would instruct the City Attorney’s Office to draft an ordinance to extend such measures under the Fair Work Week ordinance to cover employees of fast food businesses.
Additionally, the city staff would be tasked with providing reports on ways to increase compliance, an estimate of costs, and an analysis of other jurisdictions such as New York, Seattle and Oregon where similar policies are in place.
The city’s Fair Work Week ordinance — signed into law in 2022 — requires employers to give retail workers their schedules in advance. It covers some 2,500 large chain fast food restaurants and about 50,000 workers.
“…We’re trying to address a few things that are happening in the industry, and that’s to make sure that workers have predictable schedules,” said Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez, who introduced the proposal alongside his colleague Curren Price.
Soto-Martinez emphasized that the proposal is about providing workers paid time off to spend with their families and attend important events such as graduations, recitals, or a doctor’s appointment.
“We have to recognize that whatever we’re doing right now as a city is not enough,” he added. “It’s not about posting something in a break room. It’s about giving workers the tools… folks need to be able to know how to maneuver this system, to know where they can go for support and make sure that their rights are being respected.”
Councilwoman Traci Park introduced two amendments to the proposal, which were approved.
Park called upon city staff to collect feedback from the city’s small business community such as the Small Business Commission, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, quick-service restaurants and other interested organizations. Park asked for a report on the current state of the fast food industry in the aftermath of January’s wildfires.
Fast food workers and members of SEIU Local 721 held a rally prior to the committee meeting outside of City Hall. They later joined the meeting and gave public comment in support of the protections.
The proposed policy was criticized by a coalition of restaurant owners, business groups and quick-service restaurant brands. They say it would drive up food costs and threaten the viability of local food establishments in the city.
“Owning a restaurant was my American Dream, but these policies are turning it into a nightmare,” said Nayanika Barker, who owns one Subway restaurant in Los Angeles. “I’m already struggling under the weight of the state’s $20 minimum wage, and this new ordinance would pile even more costs onto us. Single-Unit owners like me don’t have unlimited resources—we have families to support and employees who rely on us for their livelihoods. The City Council should know this ordinance would further strain family-owned restaurants like mine.”
“Since April, I’ve had to make painful decisions—raising prices, cutting worker hours, and putting growth plans on hold—just to keep my doors open,” said Tom Trujillo, who owns two Wienerschnitzel restaurants in Los Angeles. “Now, this new ordinance threatens to push my business over the edge. Latino-owned small businesses like mine don’t have the deep pockets—we’re operating on razor-thin margins, and we’re hurting. I hope Councilmembers realize that this ordinance would make it very difficult, if not impossible, for Latino-owned small businesses like mine to survive.”
“The Costly Restaurant Ordinance would take away the schedule flexibility our employees value and local restaurants rely on – making it harder for employees to pick up extra hours, swap shifts or adjust their schedules when unexpected life happens,” said Rob Kirksey, who owns six Wingstop restaurants in Los Angeles. “It’s a relief that the City Council is taking steps to study the real-world impacts of this unnecessary and harmful ordinance before moving forward. The City Council should know that small business owners like me simply can’t afford additional costly mandates.”
A recent report published by the Workplace Justice Lab at Rutgers University and Northwestern University found that one in four fast food workers were paid below the minimum wage in 2024. A significant amount of fast food workers experienced wage theft — much more compared to other major industries in Los Angeles such as health care support, retail and transportation, the study said.
Additionally, the report said Los Angeles fast food workers lose almost $3,500 a year or 16% of their income because employers pay them below the minimum wage. In the last six years, that amounts to more than a quarter of a billion dollars, according to researchers.
With more than 557,000 workers across more than 30,000 locations, California’s fast food industry is one of the state’s largest and fastest growing low-wage sectors.
Last year, AB 1228 went into effect, boosting fast food workers’ earnings from the state’s minimum wage of $16 per hour to $20 per hour. The law also established a Fast Food Council made up of nine voting members, consisting of the fast food industry, franchisees, employees, advocates, one unaffiliated member of the public and two non-voting members, who will provide direction and coordinate with state powers to ensure the health, safety and employment of fast food workers.
City News Service contributed to this report.
