The Assembly Labor and Employment Committee yesterday passed a “job killer” bill imposing a one-size-fits-all scheduling mandate on general retail employers.

AB 357 (Chiu; D-San Francisco) dramatically increases the cost of doing business for a broadly defined “food and general retail establishment” in California by exposing employers to significant penalties and litigation for accommodating employee and business scheduling demands, creating a new protected classification for employees, and a new leave of absence for employees.

The bill passed the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee 4-3 on April 22. It was not a party-line vote. Democrat Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Campbell) raised concerns with the bill and voted “no.”

Key Vote

Ayes: Chu (D-Monterey Park), Hernández (D-West Covina), McCarty (D-Sacramento), Thurmond (D-Richmond),

Noes: Low (D-Campbell), Harper (R-Huntington Beach), Patterson (R-Fresno).

The bill now heads to the Assembly Appropriations Committee; no hearing date has been set. (CalChamber, April 23, 2015)