In summary
Gov. Newsom and legislative Democrats pushed through a law that bans employers from requiring workers to attend ‘captive audience meetings.’ It was the latest victory for the labor movement at the state Capitol.
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Starting Jan. 1, California employers won’t be able to require workers to attend any meetings related to their political or religious views — or how their bosses feel about unions.
That’s according to a new law, Senate Bill 399, that is one of the most prominent of the usual wave of new workplace laws businesses are expected to follow each year.
The legislation came as the Legislature’s Democratic supermajority sought to support a rising wave of unionization across California and the nation.
The law bans mandatory workplace meetings in which the employer discusses their “opinion about religious or political matters,” the latter of which is defined to include the decision on whether to join a union. Workers cannot be disciplined for refusing to attend such a meeting under SB 399.
The new law’s proponents, including the California Labor Federation, say such meetings can intimidate workers out of exercising their right to unionize, though retaliation from employers is already illegal.
Business groups such as the California Chamber of Commerce opposed the new law, arguing it would infringe on employers’ right to free speech and ability to discuss the effects of laws or regulation on their industries. The law includes exceptions...
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