SFO Workers Eye $30 Minimum Wage by 2030
If the proposal passes, baggage handlers and wheelchair attendants at SFO would see their pay rise toward $30 an hour by 2030.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Air Travel
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Airport workers at San Francisco International, including wheelchair attendant Nestor Dolde, who has worked at SFO for 17 years at $22.51 an hour, could see their pay rise to $30 an hour by 2030 under a proposal from Supervisor Rafael Mandelman. The ordinance would cover baggage handlers, wheelchair attendants, car rental staff and aircraft cabin cleaners at SFO.
Why it matters
The city's 1999 airport minimum, set just $0.50 above the citywide floor, has not kept pace with Bay Area living costs, and workers say their wages cannot cover rent here. Whether the board takes the measure up is still open, and it is unclear whether it will reach a full board vote before Mandelman leaves office at the end of this year.
The proposal would lift airport wages from a 1999 floor set $0.50 above the citywide minimum to $30 an hour by 2030, compared with Dolde's current $22.51. SFO's on-site business generated $14.4 billion in fiscal 2024, and whether that revenue absorbs higher labor costs has not been determined.
The players
Rafael Mandelman
San Francisco Supervisor who proposed the $30 minimum wage ordinance for SFO workers.
Nestor Dolde
Wheelchair attendant at San Francisco International Airport for 17 years, earning $22.51 an hour.
Sanjay Garla
Spokesperson who said the ordinance would likely affect more than 10,000 airport subcontractor employees.
United Airlines
Airline that contracts most of the subcontractors whose workers would be affected by the proposal.
The details
Mandelman's ordinance would set minimum pay for workers in baggage handling, wheelchair assistance, car rental and aircraft cabin cleaning at SFO, and it would not reach cafe, restaurant or retail employees in the terminals, who won raises two years ago after a three-day strike. Sanjay Garla said the measure would likely affect more than 10,000 subcontractor employees, most of them contracted by United Airlines. The union has been in contract renegotiations for over a year, and the proposal remains a proposal until the Board of Supervisors acts on it.
Timeline
1999: San Francisco set the airport minimum at $0.50 above the citywide floor.
Two years ago: terminal cafe, restaurant and retail workers won raises after a strike.
Last year: the Los Angeles City Council passed a similar $30 proposal for LAX workers.
End of this year: Mandelman leaves office, before the bill is expected to reach a full board vote.
2030: the proposed $30 minimum would take effect.
Across the Bay
San Francisco's 1999 airport wage floor, set just above the citywide minimum, is the baseline this proposal would replace with a $30 target by 2030. It follows Los Angeles, whose City Council passed a similar $30 proposal for LAX last year.
If you fly out of SFO, the proposal could raise the cost of the airport services you use, though the projected increase for travelers has not been quantified. The change would phase in gradually, reaching $30 an hour only by 2030, so no immediate change to fares or service is expected from it.
The takeaway
Watch whether the Board of Supervisors takes up Mandelman's ordinance before he leaves office at the end of this year, since that vote decides whether the 2030 timeline moves forward. Residents who want to weigh in can follow the measure through the board's legislative file as it advances.
Further reading
For more on how the airport's operations and passengers are affected, see Air Travel coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by San Francisco Chronicle.
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