BILL ANALYSIS
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 236
Author: Swanson (D)
Amended: 8/26/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE LABOR & INDUST. RELATIONS COMMITTEE : 4-2, 7/8/09
AYES: DeSaulnier, Ducheny, Leno, Yee
NOES: Wyland, Hollingsworth
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 8-5, 8/17/09
AYES: Kehoe, Corbett, Hancock, Leno, Oropeza, Price, Wolk,
Yee
NOES: Cox, Denham, Runner, Walters, Wyland
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 51-27, 6/2/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Employment: car washes
SOURCE : California Labor Federation
DIGEST : This bill extends the sunset date on the
statutory enforcement program regulating the employment
practices of car washes from January 1, 2010 to January 1,
2014.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/26/09 exempt motor vehicle
repair businesses from the definition of "employer" with
respect to special regulations governing the car washing
and polishing business.
CONTINUED
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ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Regulates the car washing and polishing industry by
requiring specific recordkeeping requirements of car
wash employers on employee wages, hours and working
conditions.
2. Requires car wash employers to register with the Labor
Commissioner and post a wage surety bond, as specified.
3. Establishes a car wash worker fund into which penalties
and registration fees are deposited for disbursement by
the Labor Commissioner to employees of car washing or
polishing businesses found to be in violation of current
law.
4. States that charitable groups, rental car agencies,
self-service or automated car wash that have no more
than two full-time employees - for cashiering and/or
maintenance purposes - and licensed vehicle dealers or
automotive repair businesses are exempted.
5. Requires the Labor Commissioner to report to the
Legislature no later than December 31, 2008, on the
status of labor law violations and enforcement in the
car washing and polishing industry.
6. Contains a sunset date relating to the regulation of the
car washing and polishing industry to January 1, 2010.
This bill:
1. Extends the sunset date on the statutory enforcement
program regulating the employment practices of car
washes from January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2014.
2. Specifies that a new motor vehicle dealer or an
automotive repair dealer, as defined, is not an employer
for the purposes of the car wash regulatory provisions.
Comments
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In 1999, SB 1097 (Hayden), which sought to regulate the car
wash industry, was vetoed by the Governor. In his veto
message, the Governor said, in part: "I am vetoing this
bill. I do not believe that the need to register car
washes with the LC has been demonstrated. I am however
asking the Director of Industrial Relations (DIR) to review
the activities of the car washing industry and make any and
all appropriate recommendation to me by June 30, 2001."
In response to the Governor's veto directive, DIR filed an
internal report about labor law violations in the industry
and possible remedies, considering limited resources and
widespread violations that affect other industries in the
state. Additionally, in early 2003, DIR conducted a
coordinated enforcement sweep of the car washing and
polishing industry in the Los Angeles area, finding
numerous labor law violations, collecting back wages and
penalties due totaling over $250,000.
As a result of proven violations in this industry, AB 1688
(Goldberg), "The Car Wash Worker Bill", was signed into law
and took effect on January 1, 2004. AB 1688 contained a
sunset date of January 1, 2007. The final car wash
regulations were promulgated by DIR and finally adopted by
the Office of Administrative Law in December 2005.
SB 1468 (Alarcon), 2005-06 Session, extended the sunset
date relating to the regulation of the car washing and
polishing industry to January 1, 2010, and required the
Labor Commissioner to report to the Legislature no later
than December 31, 2008, on the status of labor law
violations and enforcement in the car washing and polishing
industry.
In March 2008, the Los Angeles Times reported the results
of an investigation of the car wash industry finding that
many owners pay less than half of the required minimum wage
and that two-thirds of those inspected by the state since
2003, were out of compliance with one or more labor laws.
Some violations included underpaying workers, hiring
minors, operating without workers' compensation insurance
and denying workers their meal and rest breaks.
The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) in the
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Department of Industrial Relations released the mandated
study of the car wash and polishing industry in April of
this year. In the report, DLSE said the number of
registered firms increased from 2007 to 2008 and that the
number of citations decreased in that period. However, the
report found that there continue to be hundreds of
violations of labor standards. Many firms had no workers'
compensation for their workers, and there were many other
violations of labor law (e.g., child labor violations, and
failure to pay minimum wages and overtime pay).
Due to the lack of enforcement of this law, combined with
the wage and hour violations that continue to plague the
industry, this bill seeks to permanently extend this law.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 Fund
Sunset extension
- registration fees (revenues) ($360)
($720)($720) Special*
- costs $101 $202 $202
- restitution fees (revenues) ($150)
($300)($300) Special**
- costs $40 $80 $80
* Car Wash Worker Fund (7350-3072), 2009-10
**Car Wash Worker Restitution Fund (7350-3071), 2009-10
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/27/09)
California Labor Federation (source)
Asian Pacific American Legal Board of the California
Conference Board of Amalgamated Transit Union
Bet Tzedek
California Immigrant Policy Center
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
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California School Employees Association
California Teamsters Public Affairs Council
Coalition for Human Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles
Community Labor Environmental Action Network
Engineers and Scientists of California
Enlace
Garment Worker Center
Inner City Law Center
International Longshore and Warehouse Union
Ironworkers Local 416
Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance
La Raza Centro Legal, Inc.
Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy
Los Angeles County Federation of Labor
Maintenance Cooperation Trust Fund
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
National Employment Law Project
National Immigration Law Center
National Lawyers Guild Labor and Employment Committee
Pride at Work
Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 21
Professional Musicians Local 47
Progressive Jewish Alliance
Sacramento Central Labor Council
San Francisco Labor Council
San Mateo Labor Council
Southern California Coalition for Occupational Safety and
Health
Strategic Committee of Public Employees, LIUNA
Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education
Teamsters 396
The Wage Justice Center
United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement
Workers of America Local 2856
United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1442
United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 770
United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Western States
Council
UNITE HERE!
United Steelworkers Local 675
Worksafe
Writers Guild of America, West
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The California Labor Federation,
the bill's sponsor, states that there are over 22,000 car
wash employees in California, leading the nation in both
the number of establishments and the number of employees.
Unfortunately, many car wash employers routinely violate
basic labor laws leading to unsafe and unhealthy workplaces
for workers and communities they serve. With the passage
of the Car Wash Registry Act, the Legislature acknowledged
that existing laws did not adequately protect some of the
state's most vulnerable low-wage workers and recognized the
opportunity to level the competitive playing field for law
abiding businesses.
Supporters contend that this bill is still needed due to
the continued severe and widespread labor violations in the
industry. This industry clearly thrives on working outside
the law. This bill was intended to be a tool to root out
the egregious violations of labor law that occur in this
industry. As the law has been implemented, enforcement
efforts in the underground car wash economy have
begun to improve and for the first time workers have had
access to justice. This bill will enable the Car Wash
Registry Act to provide strong protections and remedies for
car wash workers who are exploited by unscrupulous
employers.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Arambula, Beall, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter,
Chesbro, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, Eng, Evans,
Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Hall, Hayashi,
Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jones, Krekorian, Lieu,
Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Monning, Nava, John A.
Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas,
Saldana, Skinner, Solorio, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres,
Torrico, Yamada, Bass
NOES: Anderson, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Conway, Cook,
DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Fletcher, Fuller, Gaines,
Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Harkey, Jeffries, Knight,
Logue, Miller, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, Silva, Smyth,
Audra Strickland, Tran, Villines
NO VOTE RECORDED: Bill Berryhill, Block
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AGB:mw 8/27/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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