Daily Business Report-July 2, 2019
A bill codifying a landmark California Supreme Court ruling has created a scramble for exemptions from the new law. (Illustration for CALmatters by Trevor Eischen)
From strip clubs to strip malls, how 2 million workers
could be swept up in a bill aimed at the gig economy
By Judy Lin | CALmatters
Do you freelance in California? Have a side hustle? Drive trucks? Work construction? Do nails? Work on political campaigns? Then you should you be paying attention to a major employment fight coming to a head in Sacramento.
In coming weeks, the state Senate will begin hearings on a bill that will make it harder to classify workers as independent contractors, officially codifying a sweeping 2018 California Supreme Court decision. The so-called “Dynamex” bill, supported by organized labor and named for the court case, has made headlines for threatening the on-demand business model made popular by the likes of Uber, Lyft, Door Dash and Postmates.
Less discussed, however, is the extent to which Assembly Bill 5 (by San Diego Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez) could sweep up some 2 million workers across industries far from the sharing economy and tech sectors, from truck drivers and general contractors to nail salons and strippers. The proposal has so unsettled mainstream businesses that they’ve banded together with sharing economy disruptors to run an “I’m Independent” campaign.
The legislation would rewrite the rules for when a worker is deemed an official employee, upending longstanding employment practices by newspapers, winemakers, private investigators, music schools and other enterprises.
“Does AB 5 have very wide repercussions? Yes, that’s what makes the negotiations very complicated,” said labor rights attorney Bill Sokol, who teaches employment law at San Francisco State University and is not a part of the negotiations.
California has long led the nation on employment practices and AB 5 may be just the beginning as policymakers wrestle with updating labor codes in today’s app-for-hire world. Though the high court decision clearly raised the bar for treating workers as independent contractors rather than full employees, the devil is in the details that will be spelled out in the pending legislation.
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Major events coming this month
to San Diego Convention Center
- Esri International User Conference: July 8-11. 18,000 attendees
- Comic-Con International San Diego: July 18-21. 135,000 attendees
- 31st Dept. of the Navy Gold Coast Procurement Event: July 25-26. 1,500 attendees
- American Association for Justice Annual: July 27-30. 3,500 attendees
- Ass. for Healthcare Resource & Materials Management: July 28-31. 1,600 attendees
- AVID Summer Institute 2019: July 29-31. 5,000 attendees
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PCI Pharma Services leases 38,000
square feet at Canyon Ridge Technology Park
Irvine Company Office Properties announced that PCI Pharma Services, a biopharmaceutical outsourcing services provider, has leased a 38,000-square-foot building at Canyon Ridge Technology Park, an 11-building campus in Sorrento Mesa.
PCI acquired San Diego-based Sherpa Clinical Packaging in 2018, which expanded PCI’s U.S. operations to the West Coast.
The new two-story state-of-the-art facility – located less than a mile from its existing San Diego campus – will serve as PCI’s main storage, logistics and distribution center on the West Coast. Beyond controlled room temperature, the building will be equipped for Cold Chain requirements for 2-8°C, -20°C, and -80°C with expanded ultra-low freezer capabilities, as well as cryogenic liquid nitrogen storage at -196°C.
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Ellen Neufeldt starts first day as
Cal State San Marcos’ new president
Ellen J. Neufeldt on Monday officially began her tenure as Cal State San Marcos’ new president — its fourth leader in university history.
Neufeldt was appointed to the presidency in March by the CSU Board of Trustees. She comes to CSUSM from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., where she served as vice president of student engagement and enrollment services.
Neufeldt is replacing Karen Haynes, who retired at the end of June after more than 15 years as CSUSM’s president.
“As I begin my first day on campus, I feel so fortunate to be a part of this tremendous community,” Neufeldt said. “Students, faculty and staff have made me feel like a member of the family ever since my appointment was announced, and I am thrilled to officially start as the university’s fourth president today.”
Neufeldt visited CSUSM as its incoming president in April, spending two days touring the campus and meeting students, faculty and staff. Later this summer, she plans to begin a listening and learning tour to broaden her understanding of the university and to foster relationships with people on campus and in the community.
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State legislatures seek to
undermine the ‘Janus’ Decision
By Trey Kovacs | Competitive Enterprise Institute
Labor unions continue to deny the First Amendment rights of public employees despite the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Janus v. AFSCME, which ruled one year ago that non-union workers cannot be compelled to pay union fees as a condition of employment. Many public employees that want to drop their membership have found it can be exceedingly difficult to do so. There have been numerous instances of labor unions enforcing invalid windows periods that prohibit workers from revoking their membership outside of a narrow period of time that only comes around once per year or less.
But labor unions are not the only obstacle for workers who may want to exercise their Janus rights and end union payments. Like most Americans, a majority of public employees do not eagerly await Supreme Court decisions or take the time to read and analyze them. As such, likely the greatest impediment to workers who would like to leave their union is a lack of knowledge.
Possibly more troublesome than the lack of education on the Janus decision among public employees is that state legislatures have enacted, or are seeking to enact, legislation that keeps workers in the dark about their Janus rights, jeopardizes worker privacy, and leaves workers open to union intimidation tactics.
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Mission Fed to celebrate grand
opening of Bressi Ranch branch
Mission Federal Credit will celebrate the grand opening of its new Bressi Ranch branch, 2662 Gateway Road, Suite 160, in Carlsbad, directly next to BevMo! and on the other side of the street from Trader Joe’s. The grand opening of its 32nd location will take place on July 13 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute
in new partnership with Viasat
A new partnership was announced aiming to strengthen data science educational resources delivered through the Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute (HDSI), the data science hub at the University of California San Diego, as the year-old Institute welcomed the global communications company Viasat Inc.as one of its first Founding Industry Partners.
Under the partnership, the Carlsbad-based Viasat will contribute the equivalent of $500,000 in combined monetary and in-kind donation, bringing vital real-world applications in industry to HDSI’s efforts working with students at all levels and engaging with researchers. The partnership ranks among the most significant levels of support for the independent institute since it launched in March 2018.