When Airbnb recently launched its campaign to drum up support for more short-term rentals in Los Angeles, it said the effort would produce taxes that would help solve the city’s budget crisis and save city employees’ jobs.<\/p>\n
But labor organizations are split on the effort that’s being pushed by the so-called “Save Our Services<\/a>” coalition, which is touted as being community-based but whose spokesperson is an Airbnb representative. The coalition proposes loosening an L.A. law to allow a limited number of people to rent out second homes as vacation rentals. Currently, the city limits short-term rentals to primary residences.<\/p>\n The campaign first drew attention for what it didn’t say: The effort was funded and organized by Airbnb<\/a>. As first reported by the L.A. Times<\/a>, the coalition’s website advertised union endorsements and other business and community supporters even before Airbnb added its own name to the list.<\/p>\n Justin Wesson, Airbnb\u2019s senior public policy manager, cited saving union jobs as a goal when explaining why the company launched the campaign.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty simple: New tax revenue from tourists can give Los Angeles much-needed funding for city services and union jobs that are at risk,\u201d Wesson said in a statement earlier this month.<\/p>\n Kurt Petersen, co-president of hotel workers union Unite Here Local 11 and an opponent of the campaign, was quick to point out that Wesson used to work as chief of staff for the L.A. County Federation of Labor.<\/p>\n “Obviously he’s going through his Rolodex and seeing who he can get to back this absurd measure,” Petersen said.<\/p>\n “Save Our Services” canvassers have knocked on more than 300,000 doors across Los Angeles over the past month, according to an Airbnb spokesperson.<\/p>\n How city unions are responding<\/p>\n There’s no consensus among unions that represent city workers about the campaign.<\/p>\n Endorsements for Airbnb’s effort include IBEW Local 18, which represents workers at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. That union did not respond to multiple requests for comment.<\/p>\n But other prominent city unions say they’re against the effort, citing high housing costs for their members.<\/p>\n “Our union sees this for what it is: just the latest attempt by Airbnb to further deregulate short-term rentals and exacerbate the ever-worsening affordable housing crisis in Los Angeles,” said Mike Long, the communications director for SEIU 721, which represents around 11,000 city sanitation workers, mechanics, traffic officers, and other workers.<\/p>\n What about the union jobs claim?<\/p>\n The “Save Our Services” campaign launched as L.A. has been facing a budget crisis.<\/p>\n Mayor Karen Bass’s 2025-2026 budget originally proposed more than 1,600 city staff layoffs<\/a>, citing a nearly billion dollar shortfall. That number dropped to around 600 in budget revisions<\/a> and is now down to 75 after negotiations with labor leaders and the city council, according to the mayor’s office.<\/p>\n Roy Samaan, president of Engineers & Architects Association, the labor union for around 6,000 city planners, accountants, and other staff, said his union had managed to make an agreement with the city to take layoffs off the table. He claimed Airbnb had not reached out to ask for the union’s support for its campaign, calling the coalition’s language around the city’s recent budget shortfall “opportunistic.”<\/p>\n “They’re taking up the fact that we almost had such disastrous layoffs as a cover for this,” Samaan said. “It’s a little bit frustrating, to be totally frank.”<\/p>\n As of Thursday evening, the “Save Our Services” coalition website still said the city was planning to lay off more than 600 workers.<\/p>\n “The mayor is committed to protecting city services and is working urgently to continue momentum in decreasing layoffs to zero,” Zach Seidl, the mayor’s spokesperson, said in a written statement.<\/p>\n What are other unions saying?<\/p>\n Other labor supporters listed on the “Save Our Services” website and flyers include California IATSE Council, the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, and several Teamsters backers, including the international union, the Teamsters National Black Caucus, Teamsters Joint Council 42, and Teamsters Local 911 \u2014 a union local that no longer exists as an independent entity.<\/p>\n