Is this hot labor summer about to become a cruel summer?
Ahead of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour beginning a six-night stint in Los Angeles, a group of state and local elected officials signed an open letter to the pop star urging her to postpone the tour dates in solidarity with striking hotel workers.
“Your shows make our region’s hotels a lot of money. In Los Angeles, hotels are doubling and tripling what they charge because you are coming,” the letter reads in part.
“Speak Now! Stand with hotel workers and postpone your concerts,” it concludes.
The letter was published by Unite HERE Local 11, the union representing workers at 60 hotels in L.A. and Orange counties. About 15,000 hotel workers have been on strike since their contract expired June 30.
Among the undersigned elected officials on the letter is Lt. Gov. Eleni Koulanakis, who is one of the first candidates to announce a bid for the governor’s seat in 2026.
She also has already seen Swift’s concert — Koulanakis tweeted that she attended Swift’s Eras tour in Santa Clara over the weekend.
“All workers deserve dignity and fair wages,” Koulanakis said in a statement. “I stand with Unite HERE in their fight for a living wage, and I hope we can use this moment to bring attention to the hardworking men and women who are the engine of our economy.”
Other undersigning elected officials included Janice Hahn, chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and Isaac Bryan, California State Assembly majority leader.
“Hotels are hoping to make huge profits off Taylor Swift’s tour and her success, but hotel workers know all too well they won’t see a share of those profits,” Hahn said in a statement.
The letter also garnered signatures from two California state senators, 11 additional California Assembly members, seven city mayors and dozens of council members from various cities.
A representative for Swift did not respond to a request for comment.
