City of Glendale, CA
Home MenuHotel Workers Protection Ordinance
Background
On October 7, 2021, the City of Glendale received a Notice of Intent to circulate a petition which proposed a new measure from Glendale residents/proponents that would amend the Glendale Municipal Code to add Chapter 5.120, “Hotel Worker Protection Ordinance.” The key provisions of the measure, save for the introduction of a minimum wage for hotel workers, were previously addressed in an Ordinance in Chapter 8.10 “Hotel Worker Workplace Protections,” in 2020. This new measure received sufficient signatures to qualify for the ballot and was presented to the City Council on June 14, 2022. The Council introduced and adopted it at its June 28, 2022 meeting. The Ordinance took effect on July, 28, 2022.
Key Provisions
The key provisions of the Ordinance are summarized below. Please refer to the ordinance for more information pertaining to each provision.
Section 5.120.010 – Definitions
This section provides definitions which shall apply to the ordinance.
Section 5.120.020 – Measures to Protect Hotel Workers from Violent or Threatening Conduct
Hotel employers are required to protect workers from violent or threatening conduct by providing them with a personal security device at no cost and training them how to use it. Workers must also be allowed to take paid time off in order to report a serious incident or to seek counseling.
Section 5.120.030 – Measures to Provide Fair Compensation for Workload
This section limits the amount of space workers are required to clean unless they are paid overtime. Employers are not allowed to require or permit hotel workers to work for more than 10 hours in a workday unless they consent in writing to do so. The section concludes with a requirement that employers maintain for at least three years a record of each room attendant’s name, rate of pay, pay received, rooms cleaned and total square footage cleaned for each workday, overtime hours, and any written consents to work overtime.
Section 5.120.040 – Hotel Worker Minimum Wage
Section 5.120.040 B of the Ordinance states that on July 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, each hotel employer is required to pay their employees an hourly wage of at least the hourly wage rate paid to hotel workers in Los Angeles as required by the City of Los Angeles Municipal Code 186.02. Please note that this is only mandated for hotels with 60 or more rooms.
On May 23, 2025, the Los Angeles City Council adopted a revised minimum wage schedule for hotel workers. Consequently, under Glendale Ordinance 5991 hotel operators in Glendale are required to implement the following wage increases:
The City of Los Angeles’ amended Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance was initially set to take effect July 1, 2025. However, it was suspended based on the filing of a referendum petition against the Ordinance. On September 8, 2025, the Los Angeles City Clerk issued a Certification of Insufficiency for the referendum petition. Pursuant to Charter Section 461, the Ordinance goes into effect on the date the Certification of Insufficiency is issued. As a result, the amendment to the Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance went into effect on September 8, 2025. Consequently, under Glendale Ordinance 5991 hotel operators in Glendale are required to implement the following wage increases:
| Effective Date | Minimum Hourly Wage |
| September 8, 2025 | $22.50 |
| July 1, 2026 | $25.00 |
| July 1, 2027 | $27.50 |
| July 1, 2028 | $30.00 |
Beginning July 1, 2029, and annually thereafter, the required hourly wage will be adjusted for inflation in accordance with the Consumer Price Index.
Section 5.120.050 – Limited Waiver for Hotel Employers
The City may grant a waiver from the requirements of to the hotel employer for a maximum of one year, provided the employer provides documentation that compliance will force them to reduce its workforce by more than 20 percent or cut its workers’ hours by more than 30 percent. At the end of the waiver period, employers will be required to meet the protections outlined the ordinance.