Good afternoon sf.citi member companies,
I hope you are doing well this afternoon. I apologize for the influx of member memos as of late, but as you can see, there are many legislative issues at hand!
I’m writing to you today to provide you with an update on what transpired at today’s Government Audit and Oversight (GAO) Committee meeting. Supervisor Mar’s Emergency Ordinance “Temporary Right to Reemployment Following Layoff Due to COVID-19 Pandemic” was heard with amendments that passed unanimously. The legislation will be heard at the full Board of Supervisors meeting next Tuesday (6/23) without a recommendation, as Supervisor Peskin articulated the need for more time to read the amendments presented and his desire to engage with community stakeholders.
Two presentations were given during the meeting: the first by OEWD Director of Workforce Development, Joshua Arce, who broadly discussed San Francisco’s unemployment numbers and steps the OEWD is taking to support unemployed workers, including through their hotline program and other resources. Next, Staff Attorney from Legal Aid at Work, Katherine Wutchiett, briefly presented on the services the organization provides to laid-off workers and elaborated on the economic, psychological, and physiological harm that long-term unemployment has on individuals and their families.
Also, Supervisor Mar provided an overview of the ordinance and discussed the amendments listed below and also provided in the memo titled “Back to Work Ordinance + Today’s BOS Meeting”.
- Exempts employers with fewer than 100 employees
- Exempts Healthcare Operations Employers
- Exempts employees making more than 120% of AMI
- Removes the 90-day retention requirement
- Adds an employee misconduct carveout for the re-employment offer
- Carves out employees with severance agreements
- Removes most of section 5(a)(4) and 5(a)(5) – all the list-building / employee opt-in requirements
- Allows for reemployment offer notification by email/text before mailing; require mail only if email/text are not an option.
- Clarifies that the notification period is longer for retroactive notification – 30 days from the effective date of the Emergency Ordinance
- Authorizes OLSE to issue regulations
- Directs layoff and reemployment notifications to OEWD, and replaces the hotline included in the employee notification with one managed by OEWD
Lastly, public comment was overwhelmingly supportive as many labor advocates weighed in, with one dissenting caller from the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA). Both Supervisors Peskin and Haney were supportive of the Ordinance with a few follow up questions regarding how to support small businesses that have under 100 employees. Supervisor Mar articulated that this will need to be addressed in other ways and will likely not be accomplished with this legislation. Supervisor Mar also communicated that he would like San Francisco to lead in this effort, despite similar legislation introduced at the state level, and referenced a similar measure passing in the City of Los Angeles and the additional considerations by Oakland and San Jose. He thanked the business community and stakeholders for their collaboration.
We will be sure to provide you with an update on what transpires at next week’s Board of Supervisors meeting. Please let me know if you have any questions and thank you for your continued membership.
Jen
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