Gov. Gavin Newsom signed hundreds of new bills into law in 2021, with a number of workplace and labor laws that began on Jan. 1, bringing changes to employment practices and workplace safety. The apparel industry in the state is expected to see major changes as laws protecting garment workers went into effect and change how they are paid for their work.
Senate Bill 62, known as the Garment Worker Protection Act, went into effect on Jan. 1 and abolished piece-rate payment in the state. The law made California the first state to require hourly wages for garment workers and makes brands and retailers liable for wage theft and illegal pay practices. Gov. Newsom signed the bill into law in September 2021. A different Garment Worker Protection Act was introduced in September 2020 but failed to reach the voting stage before the end of the legislative session.
The law has a significant impact on the apparel industry and has been a divisive issue. California has the highest concentration of garment-industry workers in the U.S., with Los Angeles employing over 40,000 people throughout around 2,000 factories. Investigations in previous years have shown poor working conditions in addition to workers being underpaid.
The California Chamber of Commerce called the bill a “job killer” and called for Gov. Newsom to veto it. The Chamber of Commerce said the bill would do nothing about the “bad actors” that are breaking the existing law and would make retailers leave the state and conduct...
The Kroger Sued for False Advertising case is raising fresh concerns about transparency in supermarket meat departments, as Animal Outlook accuses the retail giant of misleading in-store marketing...