Sacramento, CA – Today, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Western States Council applauded Governor Gavin Newsom for signing SB 1089 (Smallwood-Cuevas) into law. SB 1089 will help mitigate the harms from abrupt disruptions in access to food and prescription medication, especially in underserved or at-risk African American communities, by requiring 45-day advance notifications for a grocery store or pharmacy with five or more employees, unless the California WARN Act covers a business. Those businesses must then give a 60-day advance notification to the affected community, employees, and other stakeholders. The bill requires a 30-day notice for a grocery store or pharmacy with five or fewer employees.
The following statement may be attributed to Mark Ramos, President, UFCW Western States Council and UFCW Local 1428:
“Grocery stores and pharmacies are cornerstones of our communities, and when they close abruptly there are repercussions on all Californians. Workers do not know where their next paycheck would come from. Customers would have to travel to another store – if there is one nearby. Patients do not know where their prescriptions are sent. Even nearby businesses are affected by less foot traffic coming into shopping centers. We applaud Governor Newsom for taking action to mitigate adverse effects of store closures.”
SB 1089 is part of the 2024 California Legislative Black Caucus Reparations Priority Bill Package.
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