Ventura County residents and visitors will have an opportunity to raise sails, sing sea shanties, and learn about life on a 19th-century tall ship when the Hawaiian Chieftain visits the Channel Islands Harbor in December. This one-of-a-kind tall ship based out of Grays Harbor, Washington will be docking at the Channel Islands Harbor from December 15th – 20th. The Hawaiian Chieftain, a replica of a sailing vessel that ran the trading routes in the 1800s, will be open for walk-on tours and adventure sails. A crew of 10-14 people will be on board to answer questions. Visiting this vessel, docked near the Ventura County Harbor Patrol offices, (3900 Pelican Way Oxnard, CA 93035) is a perfect way to spend a few hours at the Harbor. Here is the schedule for the Hawaiian Chieftain: For more information and reservations, call 1-800-200-5239. Please visit www.historicalseaport.org to purchase tickets.
More than 250 middle and high school girls will be participating in the second Girls STEM Day hosted by the Career Education Department of the Oxnard Union High School District. The event provides opportunities to encourage girls to pursue STEM-related careers. Over 30 female engineers, representing numerous business and industry partners, will share the excitement and relevance of careers within STEM. Industry Partners include Aera Energy, Southern California Edison, California Resources Corporation, California Aeronautical University, City of Oxnard, Jensen Design, Nusil, Urban Strategies, Ventura College, AeroComputers, and tenant commands of the Navy including NAVAIR, NAVFAC and NAVSEA. While the girls experience three workshops from female engineers in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math as they develop skills for the 21st century, their parents will be receiving information on how to encourage their daughters to pursue higher education in the STEM pipeline, an overview of the local higher education options, and how to afford college through financial aid options. The keynote speaker will be Silvia Faulstich, a Flight Test Engineer at Port Mugu, supporting Unmanned and Manned aircraft. She is a strong supporter of STEM recruitment and volunteers in many areas in her community. This event is made possible through numerous other partners, such as the Oxnard Chamber of Commerce, Richard Favor, Food Share, the Port of Hueneme, Californians for Energy Independence, Southern California Edison, CSU-Channel Islands, Oxnard College, VC STEM, and the Ventura County Civic Alliance. WHEN: December 2, 2017 ~ 8:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. WHERE: Hueneme High School, Oxnard, CA WHAT: Second Annual Girls STEM Day with Oxnard Union High School District WHO: Oxnard Middle School students and local female engineers; and Key Note Speaker Silvia Faulstich of Naval Air Warfare Center, Point Mugu CONTACT: Mary Anne Rooney, Project Director Ventura County Civic Alliance MARooney@CivicAlliance.org (805) 415-2787 About VCCA The Ventura County Civic Alliance (VCCA) is a regional collaborative of civic leaders representing a balanced mix of 3E — economic, environmental and social-equity perspectives. Its mission is to work together with our community to promote a healthy and sustainable future for Ventura County. VCCA is an initiative of the Ventura County Community Foundation. For more information about the Alliance and how to join, go online to www.CivicAlliance.org. About OUHSD The Oxnard Union High School District (OUHSD) serves Oxnard, Camarillo and Port Hueneme. Founded in 1905, the district currently operates 10 schools (seven comprehensive high schools, one continuation high school, one middle college school and one adult school). More than 300,000 residents live within district, which employs over 700 teachers and oversees the education of over 20,000 students with an annual operating budget of over $170 million. This is the fourth in a series of articles on changes to 2018 employment laws. An important new law requires small employers to provide new parents with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave. Other laws affect state wage replacement benefits.
Parental Leave for Small Employers SB 63, the New Parent Leave Act, requires small businesses with 20 or more employees to provide eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave to bond with a new child within one year of the child’s birth, adoption or foster care placement. SB 63 only requires employers to provide parental leave; it does not require employers to provide leave for other reasons, such as a family member’s medical issue. The Act covers all employers with 20 or more employees. To be eligible for the new parent leave, an employee must:
This new law will have the greatest impact on employers with 20 to 49 employees who are not currently required to provide baby bonding leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act or the state California Family Rights Act. If an employee takes this leave, an employer must maintain and pay for coverage under a group health plan at the same level and conditions that coverage would have been provided if the employee had continued working. Before the leave starts, an employer must provide the employee with a guarantee of reinstatement to the same or comparable position. Failure to provide the guarantee will be deemed a violation of the law, as if the employer refused to provide leave. Under SB 63, an employer can be sued if an employee alleges that the employer:
Paid Family Leave and SDI Benefits Keep in mind that a bill from 2016 affects Paid Family Leave (PFL) and State Disability Insurance (SDI) benefits starting on January 1, 2018. This bill, AB 908, increases the amount of PFL or SDI benefits an employee can receive to either 60 percent or 70 percent of earnings, depending on the employee’s income. There will still be a maximum weekly benefit limit on the amount received. AB 908 also removes the current seven-day waiting period that exists before an employee is eligible to receive PFL benefits (it is not removed from SDI). Employees who are eligible for leave under the New Parent Leave Act will be able to apply for PFL wage replacement benefits. Unemployment Insurance Under AB 1695, domestic service employers will no longer be allowed to file wage reports by telephone. Also remember that a law from 2015 requires employers to electronically submit all employment tax returns, wage reports and payroll tax deposits to the Employment Development Department (EDD). The requirement became effective on January 1, 2017, for employers with 10 or more employees. Beginning January 1, 2018, all employers will be required to electronically file and pay. As always, employers with questions about new and existing employment laws should seek the advice of legal counsel. The Oxnard Chamber strives to keep its members informed about new laws that could affect their business operations. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced cost of living adjustments affecting 401(k) pension plans and other retirement-related items for tax year 2018 — including an increase in the amount employees can contribute to their 401(k) plans.
Some pension plan limitations, including those governing 401(k) plans, changed this year because the increase in the cost-of-living index met the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment. Other limits remain unchanged because they did not meet the thresholds. Highlights for 2018 include:
The IRS also updated its cost of living adjustment (COLA) charts for retirement plan contribution limits. Employers may want to consider communicating these maximum contribution rates to employees. Retirement plan participants given access to professional advice are more likely to contribute the maximum amount than those without advice (45 percent to 36 percent), according to Natixis Global Asset Management’s 2016 Survey of Defined Contribution Plan Participants. CalChamber can read more about the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in the HR Library. Not a member? See how CalChamber can help you. The Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau Announces New Manager ofCalifornia Welcome Center (CWC)11/21/2017
The Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau is pleased to announce the appointment of its new California Welcome Center (CWC) Manager, Kay Faust Carter. The CWC is located at the Collection Riverpark at 2786 Seaglass Way. Carter brings a diverse background in communications, business and professional experience in the wine industry. Before joining the CWC, Carter served as a Wine Specialist and Wine Club Coordinator for the Bacchus Wine Shop in Millbrae, California where she provided customer service and management for the wine club members. Before that, she worked as an Office Coordinator at San Francisco Wine School and Business Office and Operations Analyst at The Rare Wine Company in Brisbane, California. She also held the position of Tasting Room Associate at Thomas Fogarty Winery in Woodside, California. Besides working within the wine industry, Carter also served as Director of Finance and Human Resources for Mercy High School in Burlingame, California where she managed financial and investment activity at the school while also supervising all human resource functions and overseeing the overall operation. Carter holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mass Communications/Journalism/Video from the University of Colorado and a Master of Business Administration in Management Studies/Marketing emphasis from San Francisco State University. In addition, she has an Advanced Level III certification (with merit) and Intermediate Level II certification (with distinction) from the Wine & Spirits Education Trust and recently completed the classroom portion of the Certified Specialist of Wine from the Society of Wine Educators via the San Francisco Wine School. For more information, call the Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau at 805-385-7545. About Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau (OCVB) is a non-profit organization designed to increase visitor expenditures, and tourism revenue opportunities through the promotion of Oxnard as a premier travel destination. Oxnard is an easy drive up the coast from Los Angeles or from the northern portions of California. Visitors are encouraged to enjoy Oxnard’s uncrowded beaches, explore the many diverse attractions and outdoor adventures that are unique to the area. A wide variety of hotel accommodations are available ranging from mid-priced rooms to oceanfront and seaside settings. For more information, call the California Welcome Center at 805-988-0717. This is the third article in a series outlining new employment laws for 2018. Today we are looking at discrimination, harassment and retaliation protections. It seems as though a day cannot go by without another case of sexual harassment in the news. Make sure your business isn’t making those kinds of headlines. Several new laws expand employee protections for 2018. Many of these laws focus on gender equality and gender identity/gender expression protections. Harassment Prevention Training: Gender Identity/Gender Expression, Sexual Orientation California employers with 50 or more employees must provide supervisors with two hours of sexual harassment prevention training every two years. Under SB 396, covered employers will have to make sure that any mandatory training course they use also discusses harassment based on gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. The training content must include practical examples intended to address these types of harassment. SB 396 also requires employers to display a poster on transgender rights that the Department of Fair Employment and Housing will develop. Harassment Prevention Training: Farm Labor Contractors SB 295 affects the sexual harassment prevention training that farm labor contractors must provide in order to receive a farm labor contractor's license. Contractors must now provide training in the language understood by the employee (or interpret into that language). Contractors applying for license renewal also must provide the Labor Commissioner with a list of all harassment prevention training materials and resources used and the total number of individuals trained. Failure to follow the farm labor contractor training requirements will now be a Labor Code violation; a penalty of $100 for each violation may be assessed by the Labor Commissioner. Gender identification: Female, Male or Nonbinary With the signing of SB 179, California became the first state in the nation to allow residents to choose from three equally recognized gender options — female, male or nonbinary — on state-issued identification cards, birth certificates and driver’s licenses. (Oregon recognizes the nonbinary gender marker solely on driver’s licenses.) For changes to birth certificates, the law is effective on September 1, 2018. For changes to driver’s licenses, the law is effective January 1, 2019. The bill also makes it easier for individuals to change their gender on legal documents. Individuals will no longer have to show that they have undergone “clinically appropriate treatment.” Instead, an individual can make the legal gender change by attesting, under penalty of perjury, that the request is to conform the person’s legal gender to the person’s gender identity and not for a fraudulent purpose. This portion of the bill is effective September 1, 2018. Employment Discrimination: Gender Neutral Language AB 1556 revises California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) by deleting gender-specific personal pronouns in California’s anti-discrimination, anti-harassment, pregnancy disability and family/medical leave laws by changing “he” or “she,” for example, to “the person” or “the employee.” Also remember that FEHA transgender regulations from earlier this year require employers to honor an employee’s request to be identified by a preferred gender, name or pronoun, including gender-neutral pronouns. Fair Pay Act Expansion AB 46 extends California’s Fair Pay Act — which prohibits wage discrimination on the basis of gender, race and ethnicity — to cover public employers; existing law only covers private employers. While public employers will now be covered, the Labor Code provision that makes willful violation of the Fair Pay Act a misdemeanor only applies to a private employer, not a public employer. Data Collection: Sexual Orientation AB 677 requires various state departments — including the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the Department of Industrial Relations, EDD, and the Labor and Workforce Development Agency — to collect voluntary, self-identified information pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity in the regular course of collecting other types of demographic data. These labor agencies must comply as early as possible, but no later than July 1, 2019. State entities may also collect the information from a third-party, including a private employer, that already provides aggregated data to a state department. LGBT Rights for Long-Term Care Facility Residents SB 219 enacts the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Long-Term Care Facility Resident’s Bill of Rights, strengthening anti-discrimination protections for LGBT individuals living in long-term care facilities. Under the bill, it is unlawful for a facility or facility staff to take certain actions because of a person’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or HIV status, such as:
Human Trafficking Certain California businesses are required by law to post a notice containing information about human trafficking and slavery. AB 260 extends the list of covered businesses that must post the notice to include hotels, motels and bed and breakfast inns, as defined. And SB 225 requires that the human trafficking notice include not only the number individuals can call for services and support, but also the new number for those who wish to send text messages. SB 225 makes other revisions to the model notice, which the California Department of Justice will complete. Businesses will not be required to post the updated model notice until on or after January 1, 2019. Monetary penalties for not complying with the notice requirement range from $500 for the first offense to $1,000 for each subsequent offense. Anti-Discrimination Protections for Veterans AB 1710 expands the current protections for members of the armed services by prohibiting discrimination in all “terms, conditions, or privileges” of employment. This legislation conforms state law to the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by protecting servicemembers from hostile work environments in their civilian jobs. Health Facilities: Whistleblower Protections Existing law makes it illegal to discriminate or retaliate against an employee who raises a concern about conditions at a health facility. AB 1102 increases the maximum fine for a willful violation of these provisions from $20,000 to $75,000. As always, employers with questions about new and existing employment laws should seek the advice of legal counsel. The Oxnard Chamber strives to keep its members informed about new laws that could affect their business operations. The 2017 legislative year was a busy one for the California Chamber of Commerce and other employer advocates.
Nevertheless, CalChamber policy advocates, together with members, allied associations and local chambers of commerce, stopped many harmful proposals, won amendments to remove damaging provisions in other proposals, and helped pass bills to invest in the state’s future. In 2017, the CalChamber tracked 214 California bills, stopping 91 (including 25 job killers), securing amendments to 31 (16 of which were signed into law) and backing 16 bills that were signed into law. Job KillersStrong advocacy by the CalChamber, members, local chambers of commerce and allied employers prevented all but three job killer bills from passing the Legislature. On his last day to act on legislation, the Governor vetoed AB 1209 (Gonzalez Fletcher; D-San Diego), which would have imposed a new data collection mandate on California employers and exposed them to public criticism and costly litigation. CalChamber identified AB 1209 as a job killer because it would have: created a false impression of wage discrimination or unequal pay where none exists, therefore subjecting employers to unfair public criticism; exposed employers to significant litigation costs to defend against meritless claims; and imposed costs on the Secretary of State to collect and post the data. AB 1209 required employers with 500 or more employees in California to collect data on the difference in mean and median salaries paid to men and women in the same job title or classification and submit the information to the Secretary of State. The state then would have posted the company’s salary information—with the company name attached—on a publicly accessible website. The Governor stated in his veto message he is worried that the ambiguity in AB 1209 “could be exploited to encourage more litigation than pay equity.” Session HighlightsFollowing are highlights from the entire legislative session. For a list of all bills sent to the Governor this year, see the Final Status Report on Major Business Bills. Labor and Employment As usual, labor matters were among the hardest fought issues on the CalChamber agenda. The 2018 new laws will include: • Legislation mandating that small businesses with as few as 20 employees provide 12 weeks of parental baby bonding leave to employees (SB 63; Jackson; D-Santa Barbara). If an employee takes this leave, the new law prohibits an employer from refusing to maintain and pay for health care coverage. Employers can be sued for failing to provide the leave, failing to return the employee to the same or comparable position after the leave, failing to maintain benefits while the employee is out on leave or taking adverse employment action against an employee who uses the leave. More information on SB 63 appeared in the October 12 special Alert. • A new law banning employers from asking about, or considering, a job applicant’s prior salary history in determining whether to hire the applicant or how much to pay the applicant. An employer can also be penalized for not providing a pay scale for the position upon demand (AB 168; Eggman; D-Stockton). • Ban-the-box legislation prohibiting employers with five or more employees from asking about criminal history information on job applications and from inquiring about, or considering, conviction history information at any time before a conditional offer of employment has been made (AB 1008; McCarty; D-Sacramento). • The Immigrant Worker Protection Act that shields workers from immigration enforcement while on the job. The legislation prohibits employers from providing federal immigration enforcement agents access to a business without a warrant and requires employers to notify employees of Form I-9 inspections performed by federal immigration enforcement officials (AB 450; Chiu; D-San Francisco). Transportation and Infrastructure Legislation signed earlier this year with CalChamber support will provide long-term revenues to fix roads, freeways and bridges across California and put more dollars toward transit and safety (SB 1; Beall; D-San Jose). The fuel tax hikes will go into effect on November 1. Climate Change Also signed earlier this year was CalChamber-backed legislation to reduce costs of complying with the state’s climate change program. AB 398 (E. Garcia; D-Coachella)provides regulatory certainty for California businesses, helps maintain a healthy economy and provides the least costly path to achieving California’s climate goals by extending the cap-and-trade program to 2030 by providing market mechanisms rather than government command-and-control. A related constitutional amendment, ACA 1 (Mayes; R-Yucca Valley), will—if approved by voters—set up a legislative “check-up” of the cap-and-trade program in 2024, including a review of spending and the effectiveness of the program in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Health Care A proposal to create a new single-payer health care system, SB 562 (Lara; D-Bell Gardens), stalled this year after facing opposition from the CalChamber and others who highlighted problems with a government-run, multibillion-dollar system financed by an unspecified and undeveloped “revenue plan.” The issue is likely to be revived in 2018. Housing Several CalChamber-supported bills were part of a package of legislation signed by the Governor to ease the housing crisis. The CalChamber-backed bills either hold local governments accountable for meeting the housing elements of their plans or aim to combat the “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) resistance that can stall needed housing projects. The bills are AB 678 (Bocanegra; D-Pacoima), SB 167 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) and AB 1515 (Daly; D-Anaheim). This is our second in a series of articles about new employment laws for 2018. This week we are looking at wage and hour issues. A few new California laws affect employers' wage-and-hour laws obligations in 2018, some of which are related to enforcement. Keep in mind that on January 1, 2018, the state minimum wage increases to $10.50 per hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees and to $11 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees. This is not a new law — SB 3 was signed in 2016, and this is the next mandatory increase. If you have employees in cities and counties that may have adopted local minimum wages ordinances, be sure you comply with those as well. (Example: Malibu has a local minimum wage ordinance.) Labor Law Enforcement, Retaliation SB 306 expands the Labor Commissioner’s authority to enforce wage and hour laws. The Labor Commissioner can:
The bill also creates a new citation process for alleged violations. Increased Liability for Construction Contractors For certain private construction contracts entered into after January 1, 2018, AB 1701 imposes liability onto the general contractor for any unpaid wages, benefits or contributions that a subcontractor owes to a laborer who performed work under the contract. The bill authorizes the general contractor to request payroll records from subcontractors to confirm that wages and other benefits or contributions are being made. Barbering and Cosmetology Two new laws affect barbering and cosmetology employers and licensees. SB 490 clarifies that workers licensed under the Barbering and Cosmetology Act (BCA) can agree to a percentage or flat-sum commission in addition to a base hourly rate if certain conditions are met:
AB 326 requires additional licensee training. Existing law requires Board of Barbering and Cosmetology schools to include information on basic labor laws as part of the health and safety curriculum for licensees. AB 326 requires that, beginning July 1, 2019, the course includes information on physical and sexual assault awareness to ensure licensees are aware of abuse their clients may be experiencing (such as domestic violence, human trafficking, sexual assault and elder abuse). As always, employers with questions about new and existing employment laws should seek the advice of legal counsel. The Oxnard Chamber strives to keep its members informed about new laws that could affect their business operations. It’s a crazy world we live in! Most of our lives leave digital footprints everywhere we go. With massive data breaches (Equifax) being more common than not, how can we protect our identity and the identities of our customers? We’re going to find out at the December 14 Knowledge & Networking lunch where Identity Theft expert, Maureen Rodriguez, will address this important topic. Maureen E. Rodriguez is a Deputy City Attorney assigned to the criminal branch of the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office since 1998. She has specialized in prosecuting Identity Theft and Fraud cases since 2005. In addition to trial work, she has provided training for law enforcement and prosecutors throughout California and in Nevada, Florida, Arizona, and Washington. She has developed training programs that have been presented for prosecutors in the California District Attorneys Association (CDAA), and for law enforcement through Police Officer Standards and Training (POST), LAPD and CHP training sessions. Maureen presents Identity Theft Awareness programs to community groups throughout the San Fernando Valley. DCA Rodriguez has contributed to television research documentaries on fraud issues. Additionally, she has authored articles that have been published in CDAA’s quarterly journal, “Prosecutor’s Brief”, and in the “REOMAC National Training Magazine” (Real Estate Owned Managers Association). Prior to employment with the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, Ms. Rodriguez obtained law enforcement experience with El Dorado Sheriff’s Department where she was assigned as a Patrol Sergeant. She gained financial fraud investigation experience while serving as a Vice President at BankAmerica Corporate Security. The December 14 Knowledge & Networking Lunch will be held at the Residence Inn at River Ridge, 2101 W. Vineyard Avenue. The event begins and noon and will conclude by 1:30. Advance reservations are required and can be made via the Chamber’s website (www.oxnardchamber.org) or by calling the office at 805-983-6118. Members’ reservations are discounted if made by Monday, December 11. On November 9 the Oxnard Chamber convened policy experts to have a frank discussion about the healthcare system in our state and our country. Featured at the Oxnard Business Outlook were Loren Kaye, President of the California Foundation for Commerce and Education; Darren Lee, President and CEO of St. John’s Hospitals; Kelly Bruno, President and CEO of than National Health Foundation; Dale Villani, Chief Executive Officer of Gold Coast Health Plan; and Dr. Adam Cavallero of UCLA Health. While there was a lot of discussion about different healthcare delivery systems and preventative care programs, there is no magic answer to how we tear up the existing model nor what to replace it with. As you may recall there is a piece of legislation (SB 562 The Healthy California Act) active in Sacramento that would provide healthcare for all. The price for this model is estimated to be more than $400 billion (Yes, with a “B”). For perspective, the State budget for all expenditures—not just health care, but also K-12 and higher education, social services, transportation, corrections and every other expense category—totals less than half of that amount. The bill was held in committee in 2017 because it did not contain a funding mechanism. I like to look at what other states and countries are doing that provide a better return on the healthcare dollars invested. I recently ran across an article in Fox&Hounds Daily with some very interesting data I wanted to share:
Ventura County’s favorite holiday event to kick off the season returns with The Collection at RiverPark’s Annual Tree Lighting Celebration on Saturday, Nov. 18, at 6 p.m. in Collection Park.
Community members will enjoy The Collection as it transforms into a holiday wonderland, embellished with stunning seasonal décor, and a grand celebration to commence a bustling line-up of memorable events to keep the magic of the holidays alive throughout the season. A beautifully lit tree is the hallmark of the holiday season and guests are invited to gather for the ceremonious lighting of The Collection’s 40-foot-tall holiday tree, which will be adorned in thousands of twinkling lights and ornaments. New to this year’s event will be the addition of the Eat Drink and Be Merry VIP Garden, where guests may indulge in a selection of holiday-inspired refreshments donated by Casa Agria, Strey Cellars and 8th Devil Distributing. Sponsored by neighboring residential communities Mosaic and Tempo at RiverPark, guests are required to purchase tickets to enter; all proceeds from the Eat Drink and Be Merry VIP Garden will benefit Ventura County regional food bank, FOOD Share. Tickets to the Eat Drink and Be Merry VIP Garden may be purchased at www.TheCollectionRP.com. The evening will continue with live performances from local favorites including Julian Martinez, who famously performed on NBC’s hit reality show “The Voice;” Ventura County Ballet Company; Rubicon Theatre and more. Santa Claus will also arrive to the celebration to greet guests and head to Santa’s Beach House on Town Center Drive where he will be available for photos with visitors through Dec. 24. A spectacular fireworks and light show will cap off the evening of festivities. The Collection’s Annual Tree Lighting Celebration has been generously sponsored by Kirby Subaru of Ventura. “The Collection is proud to share this special evening with the thousands of citizens who seek a magical celebration to commemorate the start of the holiday season,” said Stefanie Muegel, Marketing Director for The Collection. “As a shopping center that loves our home community of Ventura County, we are excited to be able to host this beloved event year after year.” About the Collection (TheCollectionRP.com) The Collection at RiverPark is a 750,000 square foot, open-air specialty retail center located in the heart of West Ventura County. Inspired by the beauty of the California coast, The Collection reflects the unique atmosphere of the surrounding seaside communities. The Collection is built around a town grid of retail streets, each of which has its own personality-a carefully crafted assortment of established and contemporary designer shops, distinctive dining, and signature entertainment venues. Anchors include Target, Century RiverPark 16, REI, Whole Foods Market, H&M, 24-Hour SuperSport and The Container Store. Restaurants include Yard House, Larsen’s Grill, Gen Korean BBQ, Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar, Maria’s Italian Kitchen and more. Follow us on the web, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram at TheCollectionRP. BMI-PacWest, Inc. provides preventative heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) maintenance and project solutions for commercial and industrial customers throughout the Central Coast, as well as Oxnard, Camarillo, Ventura, and the surrounding areas. With the support of sister-company BMI Mechanical, Inc., that territory expands to include Central California and North Los Angeles County. BMI-PacWest’s solutions deliver measureable results in improved energy efficiency and system reliability, while reducing operating costs and financial risk for customers. The company provides its customers with consistency in comfort cooling and heating, equipment reliability for business processes, and custom design-build solutions for their facilities. Its programs keep properties safe, clean and comfortable. BMI-PacWest is headquartered in Santa Maria; and BMI Mechanical is headquartered in Tulare, with an additional office in Bakersfield. BMI is family-owned and operated, and is celebrating more than 107 years in business. For more information about BMI, please visit www.bmimechanical.com. Last week in this space we summarized the findings of the Third Annual CalChamber Poll, which found California voters generally anxious about the future. Voters are very concerned about the cost of living – especially as it might affect the ability of their children to live in California. They cite the cost of housing, taxes and crime as concerns that are not being adequately addressed by the Legislature.
So how will voter attitudes translate to politics? This is speculative, of course, since the poll measured a point-in-time about a year ahead of the general election. But gauging voter priorities is important to understand how candidates can and should present their ambitions to voters in the coming year. The most striking finding is that a theoretical Republican gubernatorial candidate may be down, but not out. For example, a week after Donald Trump was elected in 2016, a Democratic candidate had a 12-point advantage over a Republican, 42% to 30%. This year, surveying the same likely 2018 general election voter, the Democrat led by only three points, 41% to 38%. Since President Trump’s approval ratings have not improved in the past year, the most likely explanation of this movement is dissatisfaction among California voters with the performance of elected Democrats. This is supported by a finding that majority of voters are concerned that the Legislature (82%) and Governor (63%) “are out of touch with the issues that are most important to people like me.” To be sure, you can’t beat somebody with nobody. Democratic candidates with long résumés are motivating their voters by hammering on President Trump, and Republican candidates are widely unknown. Nonetheless, voters want the next Governor to try to work with the President to solve California’s problems. An overwhelming (and bipartisan) majority of voters (71%) agree that “the state Legislature is spending too much time and attention resisting President Trump instead of trying to solve the real-life problems Californians face.” And by a 57% to 16% margin, voters would vote for a gubernatorial candidate “who does not support President Trump, but who would work with the President to get California’s fair share of federal funding.” In fact, even California voters value an anti-establishment bent. A majority (54%) of voters agree that, “regardless of your feelings toward Donald Trump, his opposition towards the traditional political establishment is necessary.” While Democrats and Republicans are split on the question, voters who do not affiliate with a party agree with this sentiment by a 58% – 37% margin. Looking at a hypothetical candidate for the Legislature, statewide voters tagged tougher anti-crime positions, fixing water infrastructure and changing teacher seniority rules as the most important issues. Voters were least impressed with candidates who supported the recent gas tax hike or who support changing the private health care system to create either a “Medicare for All” or single-payer system. Finally, voters still firmly support (73%) the all-party primary system, where the top two candidates in a primary election, regardless of party, advance to the general election. Regardless of political affiliation, Democrat (82%), Republican (59%) and no affiliation (73%) voters supported the current election system. The CalChamber poll was conducted online by Penn Schoen Berland (PSB) from October 4 to October 6, 2017 among n=1,000 definite California voters. The margin of error is +/- 3.1% at the 95% confidence level. Allan Zaremberg, the President and CEO of the California Chamber of Commerce will be speaking in Oxnard on December 1. He'll be addressing the Annual Meeting of the Chambers of Commerce Alliance of Ventura & Santa Barbara Counties. Mr. Zaremberg will be joined at the podium by Fred Main of ClearAdvocacy, LLC. Fred is the Alliance's lobbyist in Sacramento. The Alliance is a collaboration of local chambers of commerce whose mission is to build consensus to advocate for public policies that will improve the region’s business climate. Geographically, the Alliance membership stretches from Thousand Oaks/Westlake through Santa Barbara. The Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, December 1, from 11:30 to 1:30 at the Tower Club. Click here for details and to register. Over the next couple of months the Oxnard Chamber will be running a series of articles about changes in employment laws for 2018. Since California has a fulltime legislature which introduces thousands of bills every year, there is certainly no shortage of new laws that all employers must comply with. Today we will look at hiring practices. Employers will need to update their employment application questions. One of the most significant changes for 2018 came into existence via AB 168. The legislation bans employers from asking about a job applicant's salary history, including information on compensation and benefits. Employers are also banned from seeking the information through an agent, such a third-party recruiter. This new law also prohibits employers from relying on salary history information as a factor in determining whether to hire the applicant or how much to pay the applicant. However, an employer may consider salary information that is voluntarily disclosed by the applicant without any prompting. AB 168 further requires an employer to provide a job applicant, upon reasonable request, with the pay scale for the position. AB 1008 is “ban-the-box” legislation that prohibits employers with five or more employees from asking about criminal history information on job applications and from inquiring about or considering criminal history at any time before a conditional offer of employment has been made. There are limited exemptions for certain positions, such as those where a criminal background check is required by federal, state or local law. Once an employer has made a conditional offer of employment, it may seek certain criminal history information; however, some criminal history information, such as sealed or expunged convictions and juvenile crimes, is still off limits. If an employer intends not to hire the applicant because of a prior conviction, the employer must first conduct an individualized assessment to determine whether the conviction has a direct and adverse relationship with specific job duties that justifies denying employment. The employer must consider specified factors in making this assessment. Any preliminary decision not to hire because of a conviction history requires written notice to the applicant, who must be given the opportunity to respond. A specific timeline and process must be followed. The employer must consider any information provided by the applicant before making a final decision. If the employer makes a final decision to deny employment in whole or in part because of the criminal conviction, written notice to the applicant is again required. Specific information must be included in the final determination notice. Take note that the Department of Fair Employment and Housing passed criminal history regulations earlier this year. To the extent that this new law conflicts with those earlier regulations, the new law takes precedence. In addition to AB 1008, Governor Brown signed a number of criminal justice reform laws, including SB 393, which authorizes record sealing and removes barriers to employment for those arrested but never convicted of a crime. The Immigrant Worker Protection Act (AB 450) — part of a package of bills the governor signed to create a “sanctuary state” — provides workers with protection from immigration enforcement while on the job. AB 450 prohibits employers from:
An employer that provides access in violation of AB 450 can be fined anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000 for a first violation and $5,000 to $10,000 for each subsequent violation. Regarding Form I-9 inspections, AB 450 requires employers to:
An employer that fails to follow these notice requirements can be fined between $2,000 to $5,000 for a first violation and $5,000 to $10,000 for each subsequent violation. This bill also makes it unlawful for employers to re-verify the employment eligibility of current employees in a time or manner not allowed by federal employment eligibility verification laws. Federal law already prohibits unlawful re-verification practices, such as re-verification of unexpired documentation. However, this bill adds an additional state civil penalty of up to $10,000. Finally, AB 1221 requires bartenders and other alcohol servers to receive mandatory training on alcohol responsibility and to obtain an alcohol server certification. Businesses with a license to serve alcohol must ensure that each alcohol server they hire or employ has the certification. The training will include such topics as how alcohol impacts the body, drunk driving laws and how to prevent service to intoxicated patrons. These requirements go into effect in 2021, after the course is developed by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. (Note: The city of Oxnard already has a Responsible Beverage Server program and certification.) As always, employers with questions about new and existing employment laws should seek the advice of legal counsel. The Oxnard Chamber strives to keep its members informed about new laws that could affect their business operations. Last month, in celebration of “National Energy Awareness Month,” representatives from California Resources Corporation, Aera Energy, Oxnard College, LULAC and El Concilio presented at a Ventura County Board of Supervisors’ meeting the “Moment of Inspiration” where a “Careers in Energy” program was highlighted that recently took place at Oxnard College. We demonstrated first-hand how we are working with local private and public education, non-profits, governmental organizations, labor and others to introduce careers in the energy field. These careers run the gamut from engineers to geologists to helicopter pilots; all under the auspices of STEM which is science, technology, engineering and math curriculum. By working together, we aim to equip our youth with the tools they need to become the leaders of tomorrow. By designing career programs with our neighbors, communities and the environment in mind, we hope STEM education will help guide them as they lead the Golden State in meeting our growing energy needs in an economically responsible and environmentally sustainable way. Being socially conscious means recognizing the needs of our ethnically diverse communities. The opportunity to earn a solid paycheck without a four-year degree is being eliminated. However, one industry that is providing that much-needed economic mobility is the oil and gas industry. In fact, one-third of the industry’s workforce has a high school degree or less and an average annual wage of $84,000. The oil and gas industry supports an all-of-the-above energy approach which means safely developing our energy resources to support everything we do at home, work and play. We believe in having a fact-based and balanced conversation about the critical role that energy – all forms of energy – plays in every aspect of our society, economy and daily lives. “Careers in Energy” programs like this and other industry workforce opportunities focus to empower all our students in Ventura County. The California Chamber of Commerce has released a report of California legislators’ floor votes for the first year of the 2017-18 legislative session, focusing on priority bills to the state’s business community. View the 2017 Vote Record This is the 43rd vote record the CalChamber has compiled in response to numerous requests by member firms and local chambers of commerce that would like a gauge by which to measure the performance of their legislators. To help readers assess legislators’ vote records, the charts group bills into nine areas: contracting out, environmental regulation, health care costs, housing and land use, industrial safety and health, labor and employment, legal reform and protection, privacy and telecommunications, and workers’ compensation. Partial Picture No vote record can tell the entire story of a legislator’s attitude and actions on issues of importance to business. To fully evaluate your legislative representative, consult the legislative journals and examine your legislator’s votes in committee and on floor issues. You can view these via links at www.calchambervotes.com. Many anti-business bills were rejected by legislators in policy or fiscal committees, thus stopping proposals before they reached the floor for a vote. The vote record does not capture these votes. Most bills in this report cover major business issues that are of concern to both small and large companies. The CalChamber recognizes that there are many bills supported or opposed by business that are not included in this vote record and analysis. Factors Considered The CalChamber considers the following factors in selecting vote record bills:
Priority Bills Contracting Out
Best Business Votes
A “Best Business Votes” section lists legislators according to the percentage of times they voted with the CalChamber position on the bills selected for the vote record. Votes when a legislator was absent are not included in calculating percentages. For more details on how the vote record is compiled and descriptions of the bills included, Click here. Senate 80% or more with CalChamber Anderson, Joel (R) 16-0 Bates, Patricia (R) 16-0 Berryhill, Tom (R) 16-0 Fuller, Jean (R) 16-0 Gaines, Ted (R) 16-0 Morrell, Mike (R) 16-0 Nguyen, Janet (R) 16-0 Nielsen, Jim (R) 16-0 Stone, Jeff (R) 16-0 Vidak, Andy (R) 16-0 Moorlach, John (R) 15-0 Cannella, Anthony (R) 15-1 Wilk, Scott (R) 15-1 40%-59% with CalChamber Glazer, Steve (D) 9-7 Roth, Richard (D) 8-7 Less than 40% with CalChamber Dodd, Bill (D) 4-12 Newman, Josh (D) 3-12 Hueso, Ben (D) 3-13 Pan, Richard (D) 3-13 Portantino, Anthony (D) 3-13 Allen, Ben (D) 2-14 Hernandez, Ed (D) 2-14 Hertzberg, Bob (D) 2-14 Bradford, Steven (D) 1-14 Galgiani, Cathleen (D) 1-14 Atkins, Toni (D) 1-15 de León, Kevin (D) 1-15 Hill, Jerry (D) 1-15 Lara, Ricardo (D) 1-15 McGuire, Mike (D) 1-15 Skinner, Nancy (D) 1-15 Wiener, Scott (D) 1-15 Mendoza, Tony (D) 0-15 Mitchell, Holly (D) 0-15 Stern, Henry (D) 0-15 Beall, Jim (D) 0-16 Jackson, Hannah-Beth (D) 0-16 Leyva, Connie (D) 0-16 Monning, Bill (D) 0-16 Wieckowski, Bob (D) 0-16 Assembly 80% or more with CalChamber Allen, Travis (R) 15-0 Bigelow, Frank (R) 15-0 Brough, Bill (R) 15-0 Chen, Phillip (R) 15-0 Flora, Heath (R) 15-0 Harper, Matthew (R) 15-0 Kiley, Kevin (R) 15-0 Mayes, Chad (R) 15-0 Obernolte, Jay (R) 15-0 Patterson, Jim (R) 15-0 Voepel, Randy (R) 15-0 Gallagher, James (R) 14-0 Acosta, Dante (R) 14-1 Fong, Vince (R) 14-1 Mathis, Devon (R) 14-1 Melendez, Melissa (R) 13-0 Chávez, Rocky (R) 13-2 Lackey, Tom (R) 13-2 Steinorth, Marc (R) 13-2 Waldron, Marie (R) 13-2 Cunningham, Jordan (R) 12-2 Dahle, Brian (R) 12-2 Grayson, Tim (D) 12-3 Choi, Steven (R) 10-1 60%-79% with CalChamber Gray, Adam (D) 11-4 Frazier, Jim (D) 10-5 Maienschein, Brian (R) 10-5 40%-59% with CalChamber Baker, Catharine (R) 8-7 Cooper, Jim (D) 8-7 Salas, Rudy (D) 8-7 Daly, Tom (D) 7-8 Less than 40% with CalChamber Arambula, Joaquin (D) 5-10 Irwin, Jacqui (D) 5-10 O’Donnell, Patrick (D) 5-10 Rubio, Blanca (D) 5-10 Cervantes, Sabrina (D) 4-11 Cooley, Ken (D) 4-11 Ridley-Thomas, Sebastian (D) 3-11 Aguiar-Curry, Cecilia (D) 3-12 Caballero, Anna (D) 3-12 Dababneh, Matt (D) 3-12 Gipson, Mike (D) 3-12 Levine, Marc (D) 3-12 Quirk-Silva, Sharon (D) 3-12 Bocanegra, Raul (D) 2-13 Burke, Autumn (D) 2-13 Medina, Jose (D) 2-13 Muratsuchi, Al (D) 2-13 Quirk, Bill (D) 2-13 Rodriguez, Freddie (D) 2-13 Eggman, Susan Talamantes (D) 1-11 Chu, Kansen (D) 1-13 Gloria, Todd (D) 1-14 Gonzalez Fletcher, Lorena (D) 1-14 Jones-Sawyer, Reginald (D) 1-14 Low, Evan (D) 1-14 McCarty, Kevin (D) 1-14 Nazarian, Adrin (D) 1-14 Santiago, Miguel (D) 1-14 Weber, Shirley (D) 1-14 Chau, Ed (D) 0-13 Garcia, Eduardo (D) 0-13 Berman, Marc (D) 0-14 Bloom, Richard (D) 0-14 Bonta, Rob (D) 0-14 Calderon, Ian (D) 0-14 Friedman, Laura (D) 0-14 Holden, Chris (D) 0-14 Limón, Monique (D) 0-14 Mullin, Kevin (D) 0-14 Rendon, Anthony (D) 0-14 Reyes, Eloise (D) 0-14 Wood, Jim (D) 0-14 Chiu, David (D) 0-15 Garcia, Cristina (D) 0-15 Kalra, Ash (D) 0-15 Stone, Mark (D) 0-15 Thurmond, Tony (D) 0-15 Ting, Phil (D) 0-15 Gomez, Jimmy (D)* 0-5 *Jimmy Gomez elected to U.S. House of Representatives; took office July 11, 2017. |