The city of Long Beach, California, passed an ordinance requiring grocers to pay $4 more per hour to their employees. The California Grocers Association challenged the measure in court, and thus far has not prevailed. The city theorized that large grocery stores have made significant profits during the pandemic while their employees’ wages have remained the same, despite the increased risk of exposure to COVID-19 that grocery workers face. “Never let a good crisis go to waste…”
On February 24th, the Office of Inspector General called OSHA to task for not keeping up with pandemic-related safety issues. The administration has pushed OSHA to release an emergency standard, but none has been forthcoming to date.
