OUR SUPPORTERS
FOR A RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION MINIMUM WAGE
L.A. City Councilmember Curren Price
The workers who are building the homes that our city desperately needs are the same people struggling to put a roof over their own heads. That’s unacceptable. We cannot allow an underground economy to continue exploiting vulnerable workers while our housing crisis deepens. A construction worker minimum wage is a common-sense step toward dignity, stability, and fairness in one of our city’s most critical industries.”
L.A. City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez
Construction workers who build housing in Los Angeles should be able to afford to live in Los Angeles. Establishing a residential construction worker minimum wage with strong worker protections will ensure we have a ready workforce to build the housing we desperately need without exploiting working people.”
L.A. City Councilmember Heather Hutt
Construction workers deserve more than a paycheck, they deserve protection, dignity, and the chance to thrive in the communities they’re helping to build. I’m proud to join my colleagues in supporting this motion to explore a construction worker minimum wage and deliver long-overdue protections.”
L.A. City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield
Los Angeles cannot solve its housing crisis if we continue to rely on a residential construction workforce that is underpaid, exploited, and in many cases can’t even afford housing. A residential construction worker minimum wage could help create a reliable workforce to build the housing Los Angeles needs, by paying workers fairly. Paying residential construction workers fairly is a win-win - it’s the right thing to do, and it can help L.A. make progress in solving its housing crisis. This study will hopefully prove this and help determine the right wage level to best achieve this goal.”
L.A. City Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez
Los Angeles cannot solve our housing crisis while ignoring the exploitation of the very workers building our homes. Too many construction workers are living paycheck to paycheck, or worse, being pushed into homelessness. That’s why I strongly support a minimum wage for residential construction workers: to create a fairer economy, strengthen our housing workforce, and ensure no one who builds this city is left without a home.”
United Brotherhood of Carpenters Second General Vice President Pete Rodriguez
Residential construction workers are often exploited, underpaid, and in many cases are victims of wage theft. These are workers who can’t afford a roof over their head, yet we rely on them to build the roofs over our own. A residential construction wage with enforcement through right of private action assures that we can have a reliable workforce that can build our way out of the housing crisis.”
Housing Expert & UCLA Professor of Law Emeritus Gary Blasi
Opponents of paying a living wage to construction workers claim higher wages will cause higher rents and more homelessness. But with no minimum wage for construction workers now, Los Angeles already has some of the highest rents and the most unhoused people of any city in America. Builders and owners of new residential property do not charge more in Los Angeles because of wages for workers. They charge more because they can."
Former Non-Union Residential Construction Worker Josué Trejo
I worked for years getting paid late, underpaid, or not at all. I’ve had checks bounce, skipped meals, and driven myself to the hospital after injuries because the bosses didn’t care. I once worked 16 hours with no overtime. These contractors make empty promises and then disappear when it’s time to pay. A construction worker minimum wage would’ve changed my life a decade ago. We need real standards, real accountability, and a path forward for workers trying to build a future.”
Framer and Carpenter Pablo Rodriguez
I worked for over a month and didn’t get paid a single dollar. That meant no money for food, no essentials, nothing. I build houses for others, yet I found myself unhoused. So many workers like me are afraid to speak out. A residential construction minimum wage would help stop this from happening in the first place.”
Abundant Housing LA
We are in the midst of an historic housing crisis, and building the housing we need requires a skilled and dedicated workforce. We look forward to working with our labor partners to ensure that we can deliver a win-win where homebuilders can afford a skilled workforce and workers can take home a sustainable and livable wage."
Housing Action Coalition
L.A. can’t build the housing it needs without the workers to do it. Regulatory reform is essential, and so is investing in the people who pour the concrete, frame the walls, and make these homes a reality. A residential construction minimum wage strengthens our workforce, reduces costly delays, and helps deliver more housing faster. The Housing Action Coalition stands firmly in support of policies that recognize construction workers as the backbone of housing production.”
Community Coalition
It’s absolutely horrific that the very workers who build our housing in Los Angeles are at risk of homelessness themselves. When construction workers are forced to live paycheck to paycheck even as they build multimillion-dollar housing projects, it’s clear we are in an affordability crisis. That’s why the Community Coalition is proud to support a residential construction worker minimum wage to ensure a baseline livable wage for these tireless workers in Los Angeles. We can and must protect workers from falling into poverty while strengthening the communities they help build.”
Laborers’ Local 300
Long hours, low pay, and little recourse when you have an injury or an abusive boss—these are issues construction workers are all deeply familiar with. That’s why LiUNA Local 300 is proud to be here standing in solidarity to support a residential construction worker minimum wage and a private right of action. No residential construction worker should be exploited, and nobody should be paid wages where they can’t afford to live in the city where they work.”
Painters and Allied Trades District Council 36
The members of the Painters and Allied Trades District Council 36 proudly help build, paint, and finish the homes and apartments that make up Los Angeles. We write to express our strong support for establishing a minimum wage for residential construction workers in our city..."
Brotherhood Crusade
The workers who are building the homes that our city desperately needs are the same people struggling to put a roof over their own heads. That’s unacceptable. We cannot allow an underground economy to continue exploiting vulnerable workers while our housing crisis deepens. A construction worker minimum wage is a common-sense step toward dignity, stability, and fairness in one of our city’s most critical industries.”
Beacon House Association of San Pedro
On behalf The Beacon House Association of San Pedro, I am writing in strong support of Higher Wages for Residential Construction Workers. Our region faces a dual crisis: a severe housing shortage and a shrinking pool of construction workers. To meet our housing goals, Los Angeles needs tens of thousands of additional workers..."
Centro CHA
...The consequences of inaction are already evident: the median construction worker in Los Angeles earns just $35,400 per year (adjusted for cost of living)—one of the lowest rates in the country. This is unacceptable for the people who are literally building the foundations of our community. That is why Centro CHA proudly supports the Western States Carpenters’ efforts."
Homeboy Industries
...We strongly believe the City of Los Angeles must prioritize policies that establish fair wages and health benefits for residential construction workers on qualifying projects. Doing so will not only stabilize our workforce but also strengthen our local economy, uplift families, and build a more sustainable housing future."
Los Angeles Black Worker Center
Today, the residential construction industry is dominated by large firms that subcontract nearly every aspect of a project—sometimes involving up to forty subcontractors and more than one hundred specialized tasks. This race-to-the-bottom system rewards contractors who cut corners, exploit workers, and sacrifice quality...Los Angeles needs a long-term, local workforce that invests in and sustains our communities."
Los Angeles Urban League
The Los Angeles Urban League has worked for over a century to ensure economic empowerment and equity for underserved communities. We know that good jobs—those that provide fair pay, benefits, and dignity—are the foundation of strong families and stable neighborhoods. Establishing a minimum wage and health benefits for residential construction workers is not just a matter of fairness—it’s a matter of economic justice and community sustainability."
PV Jobs
...Los Angeles is facing a dual crisis: a severe housing shortage and a shortage of construction workers. The city needs 50,000 additional workers to meet its housing goals. Yet low wages, immigration raids, misclassification, and wage theft are driving workers out of the industry. Help us ensure a fairer, stronger Los Angeles. Tell your councilmember you support higher wages for residential construction workers."
St. Joseph Center
...We know that living-wage jobs are essential to breaking cycles of poverty and homelessness. Just as we work every day to ensure homes are built for those who need them, we also believe the workers who build those homes deserve fair wages and benefits that allow
them to live in dignity. Supporting this campaign is an extension of our mission: creating pathways to stability and ensuring Los Angeles becomes a city where everyone can thrive.”
Strategic Actions for a Just Economy
...SAJE’s mission is to build community power and leadership for economic justice. For almost three decades we have worked on policies that ensure our city is able to pass equitable development policies that increase housing production at various levels of affordability and we have also advocated for a living wage for all workers in Los Angeles...That is why SAJE proudly supports the Western States Carpenters’ efforts."