An update on the policy proposals this community has been fighting for.
You’ve been following along, learning about our advocacy work, and taking action with us. Now, it’s time for a policy update!
Several months ago, we announced six bills that we have been advocating for this year. We want to keep you in the loop on where those bills are now in the legislative process.
The Good News
IN PROGRESS. Protect and increase your pay rate for California’s Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance programs. (Budget Ask and AB 123 - Gonzalez)
Our legislators heard our message: at the bare minimum, don’t let the pay rate for these essential programs decrease. In response, Senator Skinner and Assemblymember Ting included this request in the state budget proposal. Progress!
Now, we need to make sure that Governor Newsom prioritizes keeping this in the final budget.
Driving calls and emails to the governor’s office is the next step to protecting your pay rate. If you would like to do this, email katie@workfamilyca.org if you have any questions.
PASSED THE FIRST VOTE. Include chosen and extended family in our leave laws. (AB 1041- Wicks)
This bill made it through its first major vote in the Assembly! This is an incredible victory, and we hope you take a moment to celebrate!
Next, we are going to be organizing and working towards getting this bill to pass out of the Senate. You can contact your Senator here.
PASSED THE FIRST VOTE. Ensure that Californians who speak a language other than English are accommodated by the Employment Development Department. (AB 401 - Chiu)
This bill passed the California Assembly with unanimous support and Governor Newsom proposed $21Million in the budget to be invested into the EDD to improve language access. Now, we wait on the budget to be finalized before June 15th.
The Bad News
PUSHED TO NEXT YEAR. Increase CA Paid Sick and Safe Days from 3 to 5 days. (AB 995 - Gonzalez)
Unfortunately, this bill did not make it to the first Assembly floor vote. It is now a 2-year bill, so we expect an opportunity to support this bill next year.
This bill would expand paid sick and safe days from 3 days to 5 days. Current law only requires California employers to provide 3 paid sick and safe days, which we know is not enough.
PUSHED TO NEXT YEAR. Ensure that all CA workers have bereavement leave. (AB 95 - Low)
This bill did not make it to the first Assembly floor vote. It is now a 2-year bill, so we expect to have an opportunity to support this bill next year.
This bill would have provided 3 days of unpaid bereavement leave for employees who work for companies with 25 or fewer employees, and 10 days of unpaid bereavement leave for employees who work for companies with more than 25 employees. Under current California law, workers have no right to take time off when a loved one dies.
PUSHED TO NEXT YEAR. Protect CA workers from family responsibilities discrimination. (AB 1119 - Wicks)
This bill also did not make it to the first Assembly floor vote. It is now a 2-year bill, so we expect to have an opportunity to support his bill next year.
This bill would require protect California workers from discrimination for their family responsibilities and would require California employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees whose child or care recipients school or place of care is closed due to unforeseen circumstances.
So, what do we do about the bad news?
There are many dynamics at play when it comes to the legislative process — many of them are not transparent or known to the public. What we do know is that our lawmakers have the power to decide what policy proposals go up for a vote, what gets tossed out, and what gets postponed.
The best thing we can do is to continue to work together and grow our collective power by:
Building relationships with our lawmakers: send them emails, call them, and let them know who you are and what issues matter to you.
Join advocacy days. We organize events like this to bring activists together to rally behind a cause and make sure that legislators hear from you before they decide how to vote.
When election season comes around, do your homework to find out what policies your lawmaker voted for or against.
Don’t lose heart.
The wins of this year so far are exciting, but sometimes they can feel overshadowed by the losses. The losses do feel heavy, but they shouldn’t cause us to lose sight of all the progress we’ve made so far, thanks to activists like you!
We are a Coalition because we are stronger when we work together. We will continue to organize our communities to make sure that all of us have the time and resources we need to care for ourselves and each other.
Thank you for all your advocacy and commitment to the paid leave for all mission! Until next week!
