From the Field
UFCW MEMBERS SCORE LEGISLATIVE VICTORIES
nia’s statewide minimum wage will increase
from $10 an hour to $10.50 on Jan. 1, 2017,
with a 50-cent increase in 2018 and then
$1-per-year increases through 2022. Businesses with fewer than 25 employees would
have an extra year to comply, delaying their
workers receiving a $15 hourly wage until
2023.
PAUL EDWARDS
Field Director
This year’s ongoing Presidential Debates
and the position Congress has taken in
refusing to consider the President’s obligation and authority to recommend a new
Supreme Court Justice make us all scratch
our heads in disbelief. While it can be very
easy to get caught up in the political circus
before us and take sides at the dinner table
debating candidate’s qualifications, UFCW
is focused on just one side - the side of our
members! Focusing on the issues that affect
our membership rather than the personalities
or political parties of candidates’ is why we
have made the following substantial gains
for our members in California.
2015 UFCW WINS
AB 359, The Grocery Worker Retention
Act
AB 359 requires an incumbent grocery
employer that owns, controls or operates a
“grocery establishment,” upon a change in
control of a grocery establishment, to prepare a list of eligible grocery workers for the
successor grocery employer, and requires the
successor grocery employer to hire from this
list during a 90-day transition period.
California Minimum Wage Increase
The California Legislature approves and
Governor Jerry Brown signs $15 minimum
wage increase by the year 2022. Califor-
5
Issue 2
Future statewide minimum wage increases
would be linked to inflation, but a governor
would have the power to temporarily block
some of the initial increases in the event of
an economic downturn.
SB 579 – New Protections for Employees
Taking Time Off for Child Care and Kin
Care
This new law creates new protections for
employees taking time off work for child
care and kin care. The new law allows employee to additionally take time off work to:
(1) address a child care provider emergency,
(2) address a school emergency, or (3) enroll
or reenroll a child in a school or with a child
care provider.
Medical Cannabis Act
A state medical marijuana regulatory framework will begin to help protect consumers,
sustain local control, collect vital taxes and
provide the opportunity to represent Cannabis workers to gain stable wages, benefits
and standards in health and safety.
Local $15 Minimum Wage Increase by
2020, Local ordinances passed in the City
of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, and
Long Beach along with other cities still
pending.
For employers with more than 26 employees, the minimum wage will increase at the
following progression effective:
July 1, 2016 $10.50
July 1, 2017 $12.00
July 1, 2018 $13.25
July 1, 2019 $14.25
July 1, 2020 $15.00
THE VOICE
2016 FIGHTS AHEAD
Looking ahead in 2016, your Union is
already working with our political allies to
pass these important pieces of legislation
below:
SB 878 – The Reliable Scheduling Act
(Senator Connie Leyva)
The Bill is intended to create certainty for
workers and employers alike by giving employees adequate notice of their schedule so
they may better plan their lives. Employers
should post a monthly schedule at least one
week in advance so that workers know when
they will work, what their shifts will be, and
how many hours they will have. Changes to
that schedule should be made with at least
one week of notice.
AB 67 – Double Pay on the Holiday Act
2016
Requires a grocery or retail store establishment to pay at least two times the regular
rate of pay to an employee that works on
Thanksgiving. Black Friday shopping deals
have increasingly spread into Thanksgiving
holiday, forcing workers to miss out on celebrating the holiday and spending time with
their families in order to keep their jobs.
Local 770 will continue to work in defeating legislation that adversely impacts our
members while at the same, promoting pro
worker legislation. Election analysis from
the Census Bureau and American National
Election Studies data of the 2014 election, show the differences in voter turnout
between union and non-union workers.
Fifty-two percent of union workers voted in
2014 compared to 39 percent of non-union
workers voted. So remember, your vote is
your voice, and standing together we will
make the difference for our communities and
our families.
June 2016