The cost of living crisis isn’t letting up and hardworking Arizonans tell me they’re scared. I get it. Rent is soaring. Groceries cost more than ever. People are worried about how they will get through each week. All because of a broken system that is rigged against them —- where the rich get richer by pushing costs up and wages down for the rest of us. Our friends, neighbors and communities are struggling so billionaires and corporations can keep lining their pockets.

Nowhere is that more clear than at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. 

As the representative from Arizona’s 3rd district — home to Sky Harbor — I know our airport very well. It connects Arizonans to the world. It bustles with baseball fans in the spring. It’s the first place snowbirds escaping the bitter cold can feel the warm air. It’s the gateway for tourists heading off to explore the Grand Canyon and everything our beautiful state has to offer.

Arizona is a dream destination and our airport is thriving. It’s one of the busiest in the country and helps fuel the major airlines’ record revenues. But behind the scenes, that dream is becoming a nightmare for the majority Black, brown and immigrant airport service workforce who are paid poverty wages and fighting to survive.

While airline CEOs make millions, most airport service workers make just $14.70 an hour. Try living off of $14.70 an hour — you can’t. 

I’ve gotten to know many incredible airport workers over the years. 

Charles Adams, for example, has dedicated 35 years to helping passengers. He only makes the minimum wage. Let me repeat that. After 35 years, he is still only paid the minimum wage of $14.70. He’s made air travel possible for thousands who use wheelchairs and has been recognized by the City of Phoenix for his outstanding service. But a pin on his lanyard doesn’t pay the rent or electric bill. He lives paycheck to paycheck and has to decide between paying to keep his home cool or his health care. 

Charles is not alone. He is part of a broken system that puts greedy corporations over people. Workers servicing billion dollar airlines should not be homeless or go hungry. Airlines like American have failed to ensure that the airport workers who they depend on are paid what they deserve. The Phoenix City Council needs to take action to keep our airport safe by supporting a $25 minimum wage to ensure these essential workers can put food on the table and keep a roof over their head. 

I was angered to learn from a recent survey that 24% of workers at Sky Harbor fear housing loss and 16% experience homelessness. That is unacceptable. These workers are essential members of our community. They deserve a living wage of $25 an hour —- what it takes for a single adult with no children to live comfortably in the Phoenix metro area in 2025, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Living Wage Calculator. 

This isn’t just the right thing to do. It’s also smart economic policy.  A new study from Arizona State University found that establishing a $25 wage floor at the airport would inject millions of dollars into our local and state economy, and transform thousands of essential airport service jobs into good-paying ones.

Airport workers are struggling to pay rent, keep the AC on, and afford everyday goods and services, because profits and CEO compensation are more important to the major airlines.

It’s time workers got their fair share of the profits they help create.

A $25 wage floor would give workers a fair shot at a decent life, where they can afford food and rent, and better support their families. It would help create stable jobs, keep our airport safe and make travel easier for passengers. 

That is a win for workers, our airport, and our beautiful state.

If airlines won’t pay their fair share, then the Phoenix City Council must act to keep our airport safe by raising the standards and supporting a $25 an hour minimum wage, like cities have done in the majority of American Airlines’ hubs. Airlines need to support the workers who help them make billions by making sure they’re paid what they deserve. This is our chance to hold airlines, and all airport employers, accountable to the people of Arizona and drive economic growth for our city.

Before being elected to Congress, I served on the Phoenix City Council. I supported airport service workers in their fight for protection from the extreme heat. I will continue to fight to ensure they are paid living wages and are safe on the job.

Yassamin Ansari is the Democratic U.S. Representative for Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District, serving since January 2025.