A major union representing Los Angeles carpenters announced on Monday its endorsement for LA mayoral candidate Nithya Raman — changing its support after it had previously endorsed Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in 2022.
Western States Carpenters, which represents 60,000 carpenters, announced it’s backing the councilmember who is looking to unseat Bass. In a press conference to announce the endorsement, Raman took the opportunity to address housing affordability.
“I want to see cranes rising all over the city of Los Angeles,” the mayoral hopeful said. “I want to see well-paid union workers breaking ground on tens of thousands of new homes near transit and jobs.”
Meanwhile, the mayor was in Koreatown on Monday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the development of a 19-unit affordable housing project for veterans.
“This development is amazing,” Bass said. “To do it with the neighbors, to do it with the community is the best way housing gets built.”
The project was the direct result of the mayor’s first executive directive to fast-track the development of affordable housing. However, Bass chose not to include a provision that would require union wages for construction workers after advisors informed her that it would increase costs by up to 20%. It’s for that reason the carpenters’ union said it switched its support.
“We know that Los Angeles needs to be built; we get it,” said Pete Rodriguez, Vice President of United Brotherhood of Carpenters. “The plan that was put in place left workers out of the equation.”
In a statement, a campaign spokesperson for Bass noted that she has an overwhelming amount of support from labor unions.