Debate is on. Deal reached in union dispute that threatened 2020 showdown

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Only 7 candidates have qualified for next Democratic debate

Who stands the best chance? Democratic strategist Malia Fisher and GOP strategist Lauren Claffey debate.

LOS ANGELES -- An agreement was struck Tuesday ending a labor dispute between food service workers and their employer at Loyola Marymount University that had threatened to derail Thursday’s Democratic presidential debate.

The food-services company Sodexo negotiated late into Monday evening with employees at Loyola Marymount University to secure a tentative contract agreement, which later was approved.

Unite Here Local 11 – the labor union representing the workers – said last Friday they would picket the debate at the Los Angeles-area school if no agreement was reached with Sodexo. All seven Democrats who qualified for the debate said they wouldn’t cross a picket line to take the stage, which threw the debate into limbo.

The three-year tentative agreement included a 25-percent increase in salary; a 50-percent drop in health-care costs; and increases in workers’ job security.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez – who served as labor secretary under then-President Barack Obama – worked through the weekend and Monday to help secure an agreement.

Democratic National Committee Chair Tom Perez and presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren joining food service employees Tuesday at Loyola Marymount University to announce an agreement to end the labor dispute that threatened to sidetrack Thursday's presidential primary debate. (Fox News)

"Every worker deserves fair wages and benefits. That’s why I was proud to help bring all stakeholders to the table, including UNITE HERE Local 11, Sodexo, and Loyola Marymount University, to reach a deal that meets their needs and supports workers," Perez said in a statement.

And, at a news conference later on Tuesday, Perez emphasized that the "agreement is also an important reminder of our values as a Democratic Party. Every single Democrat running for president believes in the importance of collective bargaining, believes in the importance of the labor movement."

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Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the first candidate to announce last Friday that she would skip the debate rather than cross a picket line, joined Perez at the news conference.

The progressive senator from Massachusetts spotlighted that her immediate response to the labor dispute showed that she's "here for the people who do the hard work every day to make this country work. It's time for them to get the wages they deserve, the benefits they deserve, and the respect they deserve."

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This wasn't the first time a labor issue affected the debate.

The DNC in October moved the debate location to Loyola Marymount University from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) due to a separate labor dispute at that school.