Sen. Smallwood-Cuevas Introduces Legislation to Protect Displaced Workers
SACRAMENTO – Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles) has partnered with the California Labor Federation to announce SB 627 – the Displaced Worker Transfer Rights Act. Authored by Senator Smallwood-Cuevas, the legislation will discourage corporate chain employers from using store closures in a discriminatory or retaliatory manner by giving workers opportunities to work in other stores. The bill requires large chain businesses to notify workers 60 days in advance of closure of their workplace and grants workers transfer rights within the company.
“Not only do corporate chains use store closures to deter workers from advocating for their rights, but they disproportionately close stores in low-income and communities of color,” said Senator Smallwood-Cuevas, author of SB 627. “Store closures are devastating to workers and communities. My bill will make sure workers have time to prepare for a store closure and can keep their jobs and transfer to another location.”
There has been a historic surge in worker advocacy for their rights at businesses across the country. Workers are taking matters into their own hands and reporting violations of state and local laws. Starbucks, Trader Joes, Chipotle, and REI actions have captured headlines, but workers everywhere are demanding safer workplaces, higher wages and respect.
Rather than address the concerns of workers, corporate chains have closed locations across the country. In July, Starbucks announced that they were closing 16 stores nationally, including six in Los Angeles. The chain closed more stores in the fall, with Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz warning in a Twitter video that there would be many more closures to come. Trader Joes and Chipotle, where workers are also advocating for their rights, have closed stores as well.
“Starbucks closed two stores across the street from ours and they told us it was because of safety concerns. But every store in downtown has the same safety related issues,” said Araseli Romero, a barista at a Starbucks in downtown Los Angeles, where workers voted to form a union. “One of the reasons we're organizing is to have a voice in how we improve working conditions at our stores, and that includes safety. We shouldn't have to worry about losing our jobs when we speak out about problems in our stores.”
Store closures and the loss of jobs is devastating to workers, their families and communities. Workers are left without a paycheck, and they and their co-workers must scramble to find a new job with little warning. SB 627 will ensure workers’ lives aren’t upended when they lose their jobs because their employer closed the store where they work. It requires chain employers to give advance notice of a store closure and give workers the right to transfer to a location within 25 miles when a position becomes open. The bill would only apply to large corporate chains that have 100 locations nationally.
Senator Lola Smallwood Cuevas represents the 28th Senate District, which includes the communities of South Los Angeles, Culver City, West Los Angeles, Century City and Downtown Los Angeles. Senator Smallwood-Cuevas spent more than two decades serving as a labor organizer, civil rights activist and community advocate before her election to the State Senate. She resides in the View Park community of Los Angeles with her family.
The California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO represents more than 1,200 affiliated unions in California with more than 2.1 million union members in trucking, retail, hospitality, janitorial, construction, healthcare, local and state government, education, arts and entertainment, warehousing and logistics, manufacturing, and a variety of other sectors.
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