Airbnb is in negotiations to cut a deal with one of the nation’s biggest unions that would employ unionized home cleaners who are paid at least $15 per hour, according to people familiar with the discussions.
The agreement between the Service Employees International Union and the home sharing and listing startup takes place amid a national campaign, being waged by unions and their allies, for a $15 minimum wage.
Thousands of low-wage workers across the country went on strike last week in support of it. Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have thrown their weight behind the so-called Fight for $15 and have put issues of economic inequity at the center of their campaigns.
California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill this month to gradually increase the state’s hourly minimum wage to $15 by 2022; New York passed similar legislation the same day.
Under the terms being discussed, Airbnb, which has been at odds with unions, will endorse the union’s Fight for $15 and encourage vendors who provide services to homeowners on the Airbnb platform to pay their staff at least $15 per hour.
The platform also will direct Airbnb hosts to cleaners who have been given a seal of approval from SEIU. The cleaners will be trained, certified and provide green home cleaning services to Airbnb hosts, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post.
The deal gives San Francisco-based Airbnb, which has raised $2.3 billion and is privately valued at $25.5 billion by venture capitalists, new ammunition for its myriad political battles.
In cities across the country, opponents of Airbnb have argued that the 8-year-old startup is accelerating gentrification by reducing the supply of available housing units that would go to locals if they weren’t being rented on Airbnb.
The agreement with SEIU allows the company to make the claim that it is creating good jobs for local residents.
“As our community continues to grow, we want to find ways to further extend the economic benefits of home sharing to as many people as possible,” said Airbnb spokesman Christopher Nulty.
