Houston airport concessions workers ratify contract, minimum wage rises to $20
Houston airport concessions workers won a $20 wage floor after a 99% ratification, setting a new benchmark for hospitality employers recruiting from the same labor pool.
Hundreds of concessions workers at George Bush Intercontinental Airport just reset the wage floor for one of Houston’s busiest hospitality workplaces. On April 29, unionized workers ratified a new contract by a 99% vote, lifting the minimum hourly wage to $20 for about 700 OTG employees and replacing a $13 floor.
For restaurant workers, the significance is not the headline number alone. Airport concessions look a lot like restaurant work, but with less control over traffic, tighter security rules, and a customer base that often tips differently than a full-service dining room. In that kind of operation, a stronger hourly base can matter more than a crowded gate or a strong travel day. The new contract raises the bar for any Houston operator pulling from the same labor pool, from airport vendors to hotel kitchens and other high-volume foodservice jobs.
The contract did not appear out of nowhere. Houston airport wages have been climbing under city policy for years, starting with a $13 minimum in April 2022 under former Mayor Sylvester Turner’s executive order, then moving to $14 in October 2022 and $15 in October 2023. The new $20 floor is the latest step in that progression, but it is also a sharper jump than the previous increases and a reminder that wage pressure in hospitality is still building.
That pressure extends beyond the airport. Houston hospitality workers have been pushing for a $23 minimum wage, and a 2025 report said many were earning roughly $16 to $17 an hour. Against that backdrop, the airport deal gives restaurant managers and workers a concrete benchmark. It shows what organized labor can win in a public-facing, high-turnover setting where staffing is always tight and turnover is expensive.
The organizing machinery behind the win is sizable. UNITE HERE says it represents 50,000 employees in airport concessions and airline catering at more than 60 airports in the U.S. and Canada. UNITE HERE Local 23 says it was founded in September 2009 to represent about 4,000 airport workers in 10 cities and has since grown to about 25,000 workers. That reach helps explain why a Houston contract can ripple well beyond one terminal.
The deal was also said to include reduced healthcare costs, more paid time off, job protections and a Juneteenth holiday, a reminder that compensation in hospitality is never just about the hourly rate. Houston Airports, which runs George Bush Intercontinental, Hobby Airport and HouSpaceport for the City of Houston, sits at the intersection of public policy and private contracting. For food-service employers watching from outside the airport, the message is straightforward: a $20 floor at IAH is not just one union victory, it is a benchmark that can travel.
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