Stadium employees at SoFi Stadium have given their union the green light to call a strike just days before the venue is set to host World Cup soccer matches.
UNITE HERE Local 11, which represents over 2,000 stadium staff members, held the authorization vote on Friday. The union membership, primarily made up of food service employees, backed the potential work stoppage by an overwhelming margin.
Contract talks between the union and Legends Global, the company that operates the stadium, have reached an impasse. The workers’ current contract has already run out, and several rounds of bargaining sessions failed to produce a replacement deal.
Eight World Cup games are set to take place at SoFi Stadium. Among these are two group-stage contests featuring the United States team – one against Paraguay on June 12 and another versus Turkey on June 25. The venue will also host three elimination round games, including a quarterfinal scheduled for July 10.
In a Friday statement, the union announced the results of their vote: “SoFi Stadium cashiers, dishwashers, cooks, bartenders, concessions workers, and food attendants have voted 96 per cent in favor of authorizing a strike, meaning workers could walk off the job at any moment if their demands are not met. Negotiations are scheduled to continue Monday ahead of the USA vs Paraguay match on June 12th.”
Should contract discussions remain unsuccessful, a worker committee from the union will decide the timing of any potential strike action.
According to The Athletic, the union has already informed FIFA about the potential disruption. FIFA mandates background screenings for all stadium personnel during the tournament, meaning any substitute workers brought in during a strike would lack the required clearance.
The union has also requested that FIFA prohibit U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel from entering the stadium during World Cup events, citing worker safety concerns.
The union’s statement emphasized this point: “Workers must have the right to walk off the job if federal immigration enforcement enters the stadium and creates a reasonable fear for their safety — no worker should have to choose between their job and their freedom.”
