‘Killer jobs’ is more like it

Re “Job killers,” editorial, Oct. 30

Shame on The Times for taking the side of the so-called unlucky LAX-adjacent hotels against the thousands of hotel workers fighting for nothing more than a living wage, job security and basic human respect. Are any of you at the editorial pages trying to raise a family on $6.75 per hour? These hotels reap huge profits from their proximity to one of the busiest airports in the country, and asking them to fairly compensate their workers is not going to drive them away or force them to resort to “killing jobs.”

The City Council is standing up for the people and communities it represents because it is the decent thing to do.

CHRIS ZERBY

Los Angeles

*

A more apt title for your editorial would have been “Killer jobs.” When full-time workers in and around L.A. are paid so poorly they cannot even afford food, decent housing and -- heaven forbid -- health insurance, that’s not good business; it’s good old-fashioned greed.

ANNE HORMANN

Pasadena

*

It is unfortunate that the City Council feels obliged to meddle in the workings of the private economy. In their quest to secure a “living wage” for a handful of LAX-adjacent hotel workers, council members feel obliged to impose economic sanctions on anyone who does well by dint of their location near a city asset. But why should a janitor working near LAX be paid more than a janitor working near the harbor? Are efforts like this worth the loss in jobs?

An unpredictable and impulsive City Council has a chilling effect, certain to drive away more businesses -- businesses that mean jobs for Angelenos. Kudos to The Times for helping the public understand the importance of free markets.

BOB SCOTT

West Hills

The writer is chairman of the Valley Industry and Commerce Assn.