How labor controversies in California could reshape the workers landscape

Jan. 29, 2024 6:30 AM PT

Good morning. It’s Monday, Jan. 29. I’m Suhauna Hussain, a labor reporter at the L.A. Times. Here’s what you need to know to start your day.

Seven things to pay attention to if you care about workers’ rights in California
Fontana is shutting down unlicensed street vendors.
Welcome to Los Angeles’ most compelling Lebanese restaurant.
And here’s today’s e-newspaper

‘Hot Labor Summer’ is long gone. But California is still a ground-zero for labor actions.

A resurgence in labor activity last summer hit California in large part due to corporate greed, low unemployment and our unique housing crisis, as my colleague Sam Dean wrote in August. The Hollywood strikes that defined the city last year may have ended (read more about the actors’ deal or the writers’ deal), and more and more hotel workers are coming to agreements with their managements.

But labor controversies are still rolling through the courts, universities and workplaces. Here are some developments to pay attention to if you care about California labor policy or workers’ rights.

A judge ruled that a criminal case against the ‘Justice 8’ activists who defend street vendors could proceed

Edin Alex Enamorado and other activists defending street vendors face charges related to some of their controversial tactics. After a five-day preliminary hearing that concluded Jan. 10, a judge dropped some charges but ruled that a criminal case could proceed. Times columnist Gustavo Arellano argued in a recent column that the charges constitute prosecutorial overreach, calling the police officers, sheriff’s deputies and detectives who served as witnesses “unprepared and unconvincing.”

Newsom sought to delay healthcare minimum wage increase

About 500,000 California healthcare workers were expected to see pay increases beginning in June under a new law bumping up their industry’s minimum wage. Citing budget woes, Gov. Gavin Newsom is seeking to delay the pay raises. It’s unclear what the new timeline will look like. Labor advocates say they are worried about how budget concerns will further impact workers’ gains — not only in the timeline for newly enacted legislation, but depleted staffing for state agencies enforcing laws around workers’ health and safety and wage theft claims

California’s civil rights department sued a grocery company

The lawsuit alleges that Ralphs illegally denied jobs to hundreds of people based on their criminal history. The suit is the first of its kind under the state’s Fair Chance Act, which limits the use of conviction history in hiring decisions. It’s part of a push to combat discrimination that formerly incarcerated people face when looking for work.

A USC case could determine the future of college athletics

Are USC football and basketball players employees under the National Labor Relations Act? That’s a question that the NLRB began hearing arguments for in November. The outcome could potentially mean universities would have to pay their athletes, with potentially existential implications for the current business model.

Striking hotel workers were allegedly hit by pellet gun projectiles; union criticizes police response

Last week four workers and one union organizer with Unite Here Local 11 were protesting outside Hotel Figueroa in downtown Los Angeles when they were “repeatedly fired upon, apparently with an air rifle,” the union said. It appears to be the latest incident in which workers have been attacked as they protested outside properties in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Unite Here Local 11 officials criticized the police response as “deficient and problematic.” Los Angeles police did not arrive at the scene for three hours and in that time a third worker was struck on the collarbone, the union said. After months of strikes, approximately half of some 60 Southern California hotels involved have reached tentative deals with workers.

The University of California rejected a proposal to hire undocumented student workers

The governing board of the UC system has declined to move forward with a plan to hire immigrant students who lack legal work authorization. UC regents argued implementing the plan could open the institution up to risk. The decision deals a blow to students suffering financial hardship who are blocked from obtaining campus jobs. California is home to about 1 in 5 of the nation’s college students who lack legal authorization.

Cal State and its faculty union reached a tentative agreement one day into a massive strike

Last week the faculty union at California State University began a strike slated to last a week, but cut it short and reached a tentative agreement after just one day. The deal was met with some confusion and has received mixed reviews.

Today’s top stories

In and around Los Angeles

The city of Fontana is moving to shut down unlicensed street vendors. The city says the vendors hurt bricks-and-mortar businesses. Vendors say it’s an attack on Latino culture.
The Los Angeles City Council voted Friday to prohibit the eviction of tenants whose rental assistance applications have been approved but who have not yet received their funds.
As L.A. searches for a new police chief, the lack of women leaders becomes more apparent.

Disney hopes to expand further into Anaheim

Disneyland’s new vision includes investing up to $2.5-billion and a plan to take over Anaheim’s city streets.
A politician’s downfall revealed the power a Disney exec and a secret ‘cabal’ have had over Anaheim.

A ton of water’s fallen from the sky. It’s not the whole story.

Parts of California have some of the fastest-declining groundwater aquifer levels in the world.
After last winter’s storms, we found many Californians are still coping with dry wells and awaiting fixes.
Spring snowpack has shrunk significantly over the last 40 years due to warming.

Politicos are battling it out in California races

The first female vice president is from California. Could she help elect the state’s first woman governor?
State Senate leader Toni Atkins joined the 2026 race for California governor.

Sorry, there’s still COVID-19 news

California’s new COVID-19 guidelines say that even newly infected people no longer need to isolate if they have no symptoms.
Therapeutic drugs are widely available, but some public health officials acknowledge that many still run into barriers trying to get a prescription.

The Superbowl is upon us

Travis Kelce gave the Chiefs a swift kick to get past the Ravens and return to Super Bowl.
The 49ers overcame a 17-point deficit to beat the Lions. They’ll meet the Chiefs in the Super Bowl

More big stories

A snowboarder spent 15 hours trapped overnight in a gondola at a Tahoe Ski resort last week.
A Riverside couple described the harrowing midair blowout on Alaska Flight 1282. A young man holding his cellphone had it sucked out of the plane, and the tremendous wind ripped the shirt off his back, Joan Marin said.
Shohei Ohtani thanks Angels and Dodgers ‘for believing in me’ during MVP award dinner.
Tribal leaders cite problems with California’s Feather Alert for Native people who go missing.

And.... pretty excited about this one

Joni Mitchell will perform at the 66th Grammy Awards next week.

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Commentary and opinions

Sammy Roth: The lithium revolution has arrived at California’s Salton Sea.
Michael Hiltzik: Nikki Haley is as bad on abortion and health as any other Republican.
Editorial Board: Most college professors are underpaid adjuncts. Here are two reasons that’s bad for both students and their schools.
Robin Abcarian: The killing of 6-year-old Aiden Leos on an Orange County freeway is a haunting and cautionary tale.
Doyle McManus: Will ‘double haters’ determine the outcome of the 2024 presidential election?
Editorial Board: Vote for Kim Nguyen-Penaloza for the 45th Congressional District.

Today’s great reads

Two soldiers have their arms around another man who is wearing a cap.

One man is preserving the legacy of the code talkers, America’s secret weapon in WWII. Kenji Kawano has been photographing the Navajo code talkers, America’s secret weapon during WWII, for 50 years. It all started in 1975 with a chance encounter that would take over his life.

Other great reads

‘You will not sit here while our children die.’ Desperate families of Gaza hostages push for cease-fire.
Arborists, landscape architects, gardeners, historians, activists, tree-heads and more, weighed in to tell us which L.A. trees are the best trees.
In Riverside, she was a penniless nobody. In Ireland, her affair with a bishop rocked the Catholic Church.

How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.

For your downtime

Going out

🫓 A ‘Top Chef’ runs Ladyhawk in West Hollywood, Los Angeles’ most compelling Lebanese restaurant.
👒 Nine L.A. fashion happenings to pull up to now that you’ve fully settled into the January flow.
🎭 ‘POTUS,’ an all-female political farce, battles the patriarchy at the Geffen Playhouse.

Staying in

🥖 Here are the new food products you can look forward to seeing at the market this year, including vegan foie gras, Super Mario cookies and aquafaba marshmallow creme.
🧾 Time to do your taxes. Here’s the difference between a CPA and enrolled agent, and here’s how to use the IRS’ new free filing tool.
🧑‍🍳 Here’s a recipe for ‘Original Recipe’ Fried Chicken.
✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games.

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