SR Holguin, PC is a union-side labor and employment law firm with nearly four decades of experience representing private sector unions, public sector unions, and multi-employer trust funds. SR Holguin, PC is committed to providing full-service legal representation to each of our clients.
One way in which SR Holguin, PC ensures our clients and their members stay informed is by keeping you updated on recent developments relating to workers’ rights. Today’s updates come following the release of the January 5, 2021 Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Meeting agenda and supplemental agenda. There are two items in particular that could impact you.
1. Workers Who Could be Impacted: Grocery and Drug Retail Employees in LA County
Supplemental Agenda item 59-B: “‘Hero Pay’ for Frontline-Grocery and Drug Retail Employees in Los Angeles County”
A Motion will be introduced by Chair Hilda Solis (1st District) and Chair Pro Tem Holly Mitchell (2nd District) entitled “‘Hero Pay’ for Frontline-Grocery and Drug Retail Employees in Los Angeles County.”
The Motion provides in part, since the COVID-19 pandemic began “many sectors were able to transition their workforce to working from home, millions of workers in face-to-face service industries were deemed ‘essential’ to ensure that our communities continue to operate, and basic needs continue to be provided for. Notably, frontline grocery and drug retail workers are two categories of essential workers who have continued to show up for work despite the potential exposure through interactions with customers and co-workers who may have contracted the virus. Working in an essential industry, grocery and drug retail employees have not had the luxury of working from home to help their children with distance-learning and, as a result, have incurred additional childcare expenses. Because of their work on the frontlines, grocery and drug retail workers have met the frantic pace of demand to keep County residents fed and ensure access to medicine during this pandemic. This has been the case since the beginning of the pandemic, with people across the nation rushing to grocery and drug retail stores to stock up on supplies bracing for the unknown.
As the County experiences a record-breaking wave of COVID-19 cases, grocery retailers have experienced an increase in outbreaks…The inability to practice social distancing consistently at work due to large crowds has not only increased exposure risks but also contributed to the psychological distress workers have felt during the pandemic…The pandemic has exposed and deepened social and economic inequalities in the County, with the burden of the crisis affecting the most vulnerable communities, often compromised of low-income workers of color. Meanwhile, some of the largest grocery retailers in the nation and County have flourished and expanded their market share. These employers employ a labor workforce that consists of low-wage workers who have been disproportionately impacted by the economic fallout of this pandemic…grocery and drug retail workers are among the heroes of this pandemic, putting their lives on the line – often for low wages and minimal benefits – in order to sustain our food system and maintain healthy communities. In March, several grocery store corporations offered $2 to $4 hourly raises to employees, at the outset of the pandemic. However, this increase, sometimes referred to as ‘Hero Pay,’ lapsed in May, while profits – and COVID-19 cases – have surged. It is imperative for this Board to act with urgency to support just compensation for these workers by requiring their employers to provide for ‘Hero Pay.’”
Therefore, the Motion calls for “the Board of Supervisors [to] direct the Acting County Counsel, in consultation and collaboration with and other relevant Departments, to deliver a written report to the Board of Supervisors prior to its January 26, 2021 meeting that:
1. Contains a proposed Urgency Ordinance that, among other things:
a. Requires that stores located in the unincorporated areas of the County of Los Angeles, that are covered by Appendix B-1 of the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health Targeted Temporary Safer at Home Health Officer Order, and are publicly traded or have at least 300 employees nationwide and more than 10 employees per store site pay all of their workers an additional five (5) dollars per hour in wages;
b. Sunsets 120 days from the effective date of the ordinance; and
c. Includes any other provisions necessary to implement the intent of this motion
2. Advises the Board as to whether such an Urgency Ordinance can apply to incorporated and unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.”
Now, supplemental agenda item 59-B of the January 5, 2021 Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting calls for the Board to consider the Motion.
2. Workers Who Could be Impacted: Workers in Unincorporated LA County
Supplemental Agenda item 59-C: “Extending the Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Ordinance”
A Motion will be introduced by Chair Hilda Solis (1st District) entitled “Extending the Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Ordinance.”
The Motion provides in part “[o]n March 31, 2020…the Board of Supervisors adopted a motion that called for a report back on implementing protections for workers in unincorporated Los Angeles County affected by the COVID- 19 pandemic. The report back examined the provision for supplemental paid sick leave benefits. The federal government had enacted H.R. 6201 Federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Families First Act), which required employers with fewer than 500 employees to provide supplemental paid sick leave benefits to their employees impacted by COVID-19. On April 28, 2020, the County of Los Angeles enacted an urgency ordinance extending the paid sick leave benefit to employees at businesses that employ 500 or more employees nationally, in the County’s jurisdiction, which were not covered by the Families First Act. The supplemental paid sick leave benefits provided under Chapter 8.200 expired on December 31, 2020. In light of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and renewed ‘Safer at Home’ declarations by California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the benefits under Chapter 8.200 should be extended. In addition, the Families First Act’s supplemental paid sick leave benefits for employees at employers with fewer than 500 employees expired on December 31, 2020. In light of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and renewed ‘Safer at Home’ declarations by California Governor Gavin Newsom and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the sick leave benefits provided under Chapter 8.200 should be extended to all employers with fewer than 500 employees in the County’s jurisdiction.”
Therefore, the Motion calls for the “Board of Supervisors [to] direct the Acting County Counsel, in consultation and collaboration with and other relevant Departments, to report back prior to the January 26, 2021 Board of Supervisors meeting with draft ordinance language to: 1) extend the existing paid sick leave benefits provided under Chapter 8.200, and 2) extend the paid sick leave benefits provided under Chapter 8.200 to employees of all employers within the unincorporated areas of the County of Los Angeles, and that fall under the jurisdiction of the County of Los Angeles.”
Now, supplemental agenda item 59-C of the January 5, 2021 Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting calls for the Board to consider the Motion.
We hope these updates are helpful to you.
Fraternally,
SR Holguin, PC
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