After ‘hot labor summer,’ California Legislature chills on union bills

People carrying signs picket outside a car wash

Sept. 2, 2024 3 AM PT

SACRAMENTO — A year ago, thousands of workers went on strike across California, and what became known as “hot labor summer” was reflected in mandatory wage increases and other state policy wins remarkable even for a Democratic-controlled Legislature sympathetic to union concerns.

But as the latest legislative session came to an end Saturday, labor unions that have long had formidable influence in Sacramento felt a chill in the state Capitol compared with last year.

A bill seeking to give striking workers unemployment benefits fizzled before it ever made it to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk. Legislation supported by journalist unions to require Google to pay news outlets for content was shelved in lieu of a watered-down deal. Labor-backed proposals to support grocery jobs over self-check-out machines, expand protections for workers who join picket lines and limit government agencies’ use of temporary contracts to replace union jobs also failed.

Meanwhile, legislation that delays a deadline for hospitals to meet earthquake safety standards passed both houses despite strong opposition from a list of unions including Service Employees International Union California, which said they were “deeply disappointed” with lawmakers and urged Newsom to veto it.

“Workers are still suffering, and we have had opportunities to improve the economy and create good careers and make sure that our most vulnerable populations are first in line for these careers, and we blew it,” said Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles), chair of the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee.

As the state struggles with a multibillion-dollar budget deficit, Smallwood-Cuevas, who was a longtime labor organizer before joining the Legislature, is frustrated that Newsom has warned against spending in some cases but not others.

She pointed to a package of 10 bills Newsom signed last month that cracks down on retail theft and requires state funding, and questioned why his Department of Finance opposed a bill she wrote that would strengthen the enforcement of anti-discrimination employment laws because of fiscal concerns. The legislation cleared both houses and awaits the governor’s consideration.

“It’s not that labor is not still fighting for opportunities or that this Legislature has sort of taken a cool-down period,” Smallwood-Cuevas said. “The question is: What are our priorities?”

Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San José) called his own legislative record on union-friendly proposals this year “a blood bath.” His bill to study raising the state minimum wage, including for incarcerated workers, was held back last month.

“We’ve done so much the last couple of years, at some point you just allow those items to be implemented and let those fights continue at the bargaining table and in the community,” he said. “Not everything has to be done at the Capitol.”

A lot was done for labor in the Capitol last year. Newsom signed first-in-the-nation bills into law that boosted wages for workers in the fast-food and healthcare industries, mandated more sick days for all Californians and banned employers from asking employees whether they smoke marijuana.

As Democrats lament the state’s budget problem for quashing momentum to support workers, Republicans celebrated what they view as a slight reprieve from the state’s most powerful lobbying industries. Unions such as SEIU and the California Teachers Assn. are consistently among the highest-spending donors to independent expenditures that help elect labor-friendly Democrats.

Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) called California’s labor unions “the fourth branch of government” because of their influence in the state Capitol.

Assemblymember Heath Flora (R-Ripon), vice chair of the Assembly Committee on Labor and Employment, opposed several labor-backed bills in part because of concerns that new regulations could pass costs onto consumers or tank struggling businesses.

He said Democrats are too quick to concede to labor demands before details are hashed out, pointing to the new healthcare minimum wage that was set to kick in this summer but was delayed by Newsom amid cost concerns.

“They got a lot of things last year, and some of the things they asked for this year were pretty aggressive. I’m glad that we took some pause,” Flora said. “We should definitely pump the brakes.”

Still, California remains home to some of the country’s strongest worker protections. Labor-sponsored bills passed by the Legislature this year include legislation to prohibit companies from forcing workers to attend some meetings and new workplace protections for court reporters and nursing assistants.

Unions also won hard-fought reforms of a law known as the Private Attorneys General Act, which allows workers to sue employers for wage theft and other alleged workplace abuses.

Lorena Gonzalez, president of the California Labor Federation, said that the so-called hot labor summer is “endless” and that unions have accomplished many of their priorities but there is more work to do.

“We’re going to take some losses, and in a bad budget year we expect a little bit more than normal. So we will prioritize as we move along,” she said. “We are always going to have one of the most aggressive agendas in the United States.”

The real power is not in the Capitol, she said, but from everyday workers and union members across different industries.

“What we’ve been seeing on the streets does not stop,” she said.