California Democrats Ask Taylor Swift to Postpone Concerts, Try to Turn Away Hotel Business to Support Local Strike

Taylor Swift accepts the Song of the Year award for “Anti-Hero” onstage during the 2023 iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 27, 2023. Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartRadio

California’s lieutenant governor and other politicians of the state on Tuesday called upon music icon Taylor Swift to postpone her Los Angeles concerts in an effort to stand in solidarity with striking hotel workers.

Lt. Gov. Eleni Koualakis, a Democrat, along with dozens of the state’s other elected officials presented their request to Ms. Swift by signing their names to an open letter organized by Unite Here Local 11 to put pressure on the singer/songwriter. Ms. Swift is set to perform six sold-out shows at Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium, beginning Thursday and continuing through Aug. 9.

Hotel Union Pressures Swift with Support of Politicians

The letter appealed to Ms. Swift by emphasizing the amount of money that her shows make in the Southern California region, attributing that to the doubling and tripling of what they cost because of Swift’s appearances there.

“The hotels are making more money than ever, but many workers cannot afford to live close to where they work. Some of them even sleep in their cars between shifts. Others are at risk of losing their homes,” the letter read. “Hotel workers are fighting for their lives. They are fighting for a living wage. They have gone on strike. Now, they are asking for your support.”

Besides Ms. Koualakis, who has said she will run for governor in 2026, the petition was signed by former Rep. Janice Hahn, now chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, state Senators Dave Min and Maria Elena Durazo, Assembly Majority Leader Issac Bryan, a candidate for the House in Orange County, and mayors from several Southern California cities.

The Epoch Times reached out to Ms. Swift’s representatives for comment.

Unite Here Local 11 represents over 32,000 workers employed in hotels, restaurants, airports, sports arenas and convention centers throughout Southern California and Arizona. It has been negotiating for better wages, improved health care benefits, higher pension contributions and less strenuous working conditions. Contracts expired last month at more than 60 hotels, including properties owned by major hotel chains such as Hilton and Marriott.

The union had made a similar request in recent days over its rolling strikes and then circulated a draft letter to win support from elected officials prior to Swift’s tour dates there.

Swift Generous With Bonuses for Eras Tour Workers

Meanwhile, it’s been reported this week that Ms. Swift, 33, has bestowed bonuses totaling over $55 million to those working on her Eras Tour. The lucky recipients included everyone from dancers, riggers, sound technicians, and catering to truck drivers hauling her equipment.

TMZ reported that the singer/songwriter gifted the truckers on her tour $100,000 each over the weekend ahead of her stop in Santa Clara, California.

Regardless of whether or not Ms. Swift wields to the union’s demands, she is set to take her Eras Tour worldwide after a break in December and January. That’s when the Grammy winner will perform in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, Singapore, Paris, France, Stockholm, Sweden, Lisbon, Portugal, and Madrid, Spain, and Munich, Germany, among other locales. She'll wrap the tour with two final shows in London in August 2024.