Sacramento, CA – Today, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Western States Council applauded the California State Assembly’s passage of AB 2693 (Reyes), which would extend the sunset date for AB 685 (Reyes-2020), the COVID-19 Notification and Reporting Bill, until January 1, 2025. We are again seeing COVID-19 cases rise in California, illustrating why the state must stay vigilant and maintain access to data needed to respond to emerging threats. The following statement may be attributed to Joe Duffle, President, UFCW Local 1167:
“As COVID cases surge in California, it’s essential that we remain prepared to react immediately to prevent the virus from spreading. We’ve seen how COVID spreads rapidly in our workplaces, infecting working people and their families, and ultimately costing them their lives, at disproportionate rates.
“AB 2693’s data tracking requirement is essential to protect workers and the public. UFCW members across the state thank the Assembly for supporting this bill to make sure COVID-19 workplace safety standards remain in place to protect workers. These standards must also be permanently put into place through the proposed Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Permanent Standard for non-healthcare workplaces. Reaching an endemic stage in the COVID-19 fight will require ongoing vigilance; case numbers are spiking now and we know more variants will be ahead. AB 2693 is how we will effectively and efficiently focus COVID-19 resources while protecting workers and our communities.”
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 23, 2022
Contact: Jenna Thompson, 949.246.1620, [email protected]