Hotels to NYC: Slow down on bill that would decimate hospitality economy

WASHINGTON (July 19, 2024) - American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) Interim President & CEO Kevin Carey issued the following statement today after the introduction of a New York City Council bill that would force hotels to abide by arbitrary operational mandates in order to stay in business.

"This abrupt and destructive bill would permanently alter how hotels operate and threaten the jobs of thousands of New Yorkers," said AHLA Interim President & CEO Kevin Carey. "If it becomes law, thousands of hotel jobs could be lost, hotels will shutter, and New York City's economy - especially small business retailers, restaurants, and other hotel service providers - will suffer substantially. The bill imposes workplace rules that should be negotiated at the collective bargaining table, and fast-tracking a proposal of this magnitude in the dead of summer without input from hoteliers is policy malpractice."

"What's more, the legislation creates a one-size-fits-all model that fails to take into account the unique staffing and operational needs of the city's nearly 700 hotels. The legislation's proposed ban preventing non-union hotels from subcontracting certain functions will ruin the ability of many small-business hotels to maintain consistent operations in this tough labor market. The American Hotel & Lodging Association urges councilmembers to take a more deliberative approach to this bill, which would have a widespread negative impact on the city's workforce and economy."

Background
On July 18, New York City Council members introduced a bill that would require hotels to obtain additional licenses to operate in the city. Securing those licenses would require non-union hotels to eliminate the use of subcontractors for core functions - an attempt to turn unionization into a government-enforced requirement for hotels.

The bill would also require all hotel owners to be treated as joint employers along with hotel operators and set strict requirements for a number of hotel staffing functions.