Speaker 1: Okay. Thank you. And now we're going to item and I'm sorry, jumping around. Give me 1/2. I think it's 12.
Speaker 2: Communication from City Attorney Recommendation to Review Draft Ordinance Amending the Long Beach Municipal Code all relating to a Long Beach minimum wage ordinance and approved further direction and provide further direction citywide.
Speaker 1: I thank you, Mr. City.
Speaker 12: Attorney and Mayor. Members of the Council. Thank you. This evening you have before you the draft ordinance with a request for further direction between the time that the Council directed the city to city attorney to prepare the ordinance, the state has adopted SB three and the with the adoption of SB three by the State. Certain provisions as directed by the City Council would need to be altered. And so it's back before you tonight to get further direction on the alterations necessary and at which time we can bring back the ordinance. Thank you.
Speaker 1: There's a motion and a second. Vice Mayor Lowenthal.
Speaker 0: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And Mr. City Attorney, I wanted to make the following motion. I moved to amend the draft ordinance to remove the city of Long Beach employee employees from the ordinance to allow the city and its employees to negotiate ammo use outside of the ordinance. Second, I'd like to move to maintain the existing schedule as shown in the draft ordinance, keeping the required study in 2019 and depending on the results of that study, continue on the path to $15 per hour. As to item three, I move to align the Long Beach minimum wage with the state minimum wage after reaching $15 per hour, including cost of living increases outlined in the California minimum wage law. And as to item four, I moved to amend the draft ordinance to make the learner's exemption consistent with the Labor Code, and that's my motion. Also as part of the motion, I'd like to make it clear that although our city employees remain subject to the bargaining process, not subject to this ordinance, it is the intent of this council to pay our employees at a rate that meets or exceeds this local minimum wage. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
Speaker 1: Okay. Thank you. Councilman Preston, do you want to go now or did you want the public comment first? Okay, go ahead. Make sure you say your name and then.
Speaker 14: Hello, my name is Phil Pinion. I I'm a fast food worker in Long Beach and part of the fight for 15 movement. On January 19th, the City Council made a commitment to raise the minimum wage to $15 by 2021, but also to create mechanisms and solutions to address rapid wage theft. This is important to me because before I joined the fight for 15, I didn't realize I myself was a victim of wage theft. The owner of my store refuses to pay that honor or six days. I used to think this was normal because I was unaware of my rights as a worker. After joining the fight for 15, they taught me that as a worker, I have certain rights. One of these rights we fought for is paid sick days. We earn total. We can accumulate up to three sick days and we can cash that out when we are sick without questions asked. Although reluctant at first the owner of my of my job, I had to stand up to him and tell him my rights that I know from the fight for 15 and he finally paid me out for my sick days. If I would not have stood up for myself, no one in my job would have known their rights or enforced the six day law. And I feel like this is happening in other places. People don't know their rights and they're being stolen. They're being tested for their wages. The Long Beach City Council needs to honor this commitment that they made to our workers of Long Beach. Thank you very much.
Speaker 1: Thank you, sir. Next speaker, please. Good evening.
Speaker 6: My name is Richard Suarez. I represent the. I am. I had some statements that I wanted to read. I put email that to every council member in their staff. There's copies in front of you at your desk right now, but I'm going to move away from the prepared comments. Somewhat disappointed that Councilman Lowenthal, who in January of this year.
Speaker 1: Was inclusive and including.
Speaker 6: The Long Beach employees in this ordinance and directed the city attorney to include the Long Beach employees today has rescinded that and now is now in a position to exclude them. I think that it's I don't know how you how you circle this.
Speaker 1: You purport that every other employer in.
Speaker 6: The city must pay a Long Beach minimum wage, but you exclude yourselves from paying that minimum wage. We're speaking about the folks that I represent here in Long Beach who is the only unit really that that is affected by this. I think it's south of a couple of dozen people. And to exclude people in this manner is just simply wrong.
Speaker 1: There is some concern that my.
Speaker 6: Organization somehow would litigate some meat and confer ordinance. There's a simple solution for that. Not only is it preposterous to think that I would be subject to a litigation because I would in essence disagree with our members being paid a minimum wage, hence more money than they're making today. That's just ridiculous. But if that is a real concern, what I proposed to the Council is that we table this matter, that we put it in abeyance for 20, 30 days. I don't think it'll take more than two or three meet and confer meetings and that you direct the city manager to since he his the H.R. department ceased all meet and confer issues relevant to this issue. We are now, after we waited from January to now to get the ordinance, we.
Speaker 1: Waited seven months. We seem to be in a real hurry to pass something this evening that in reality does not go into effect until.
Speaker 6: January of next year. So I don't believe that there's an issue with tabling this matter, putting it in abeyance.
Speaker 1: Coming back in 25, 30 days after the parties have met and confer. That will certainly.
Speaker 6: Satisfy Mr. West's concern over my organization suing the city again. And I want to remind you, I don't know why I would bring a case against the city for our members making a living wage. It is completely a farce and I urge you.
Speaker 1: To reconsider this position and to do the right thing by those men and women in this.
Speaker 6: City who toil and make the least amount of pay. Thank you for your time.
Speaker 1: Thank you. Next speaker, please. And thank you. Just as a mr. suarez, i hear what you're saying to think so. One what we're doing is taking direction from the city attorney who says that we legally cannot include the employees because of meet and confer in it. So I just want to be very clear. It's always been this council's intention to ensure that everyone gets an increase to the minimum wage. We're trying what we're trying to do is to figure out the way that we can legally do that. As you know, in L.A. and the county, the employees were not included in those ordinances for this exact same reason. So we're trying to get there. And I understand what you're trying your argument. And I just want the employees to know that, you know, we're L.A. in the county in a certain direction. We're trying to stay legally sound. What the city attorney shared with you.
Speaker 6: About the legality of this action could have spent months sharing it with us. We have written over 12 letters asking for caselaw by which he's making this decision, and that hasn't been provided. Okay, very comfortable position. Say it's against the.
Speaker 1: Law when you haven't quoted the case law that we I mean. Okay. Thank you, Mr.. Suarez. Thank you. I'm going to let the next speaker go. Thank you. And again, we're trying to make this happen for everybody. So next speaker, go ahead. Okay.
Speaker 10: Hello, council.
Speaker 4: Members, mayor and Community. My name is Juan.
Speaker 10: I'm and I'm here with the with stand.
Speaker 4: With Woman Against Abuse campaign in ways. Coalition.
Speaker 10: I am a housekeeper.
Speaker 4: At the Westin Hotel in Long Beach. I have worked there for 21 years. My coworkers and I have filed a class action lawsuit against the worse thing.
Speaker 10: Because they have.
Speaker 4: Failed to pay us for hours. We work, including overtime. They have also denied us our right to our legal meal and break. As a housekeeper. My worship became a ame, but I typically typically I have to begin working before my chips are the stock my cleaning car with all that supply. Four with all the supply that I need for that they in one they were they I clean up to 18 rooms in order to me my my role quote I fought to keep my break. The condition. We are working in our own unlawful, abusive, and we cannot do it anymore. You need to stop. Lewis Thorpe and the city didn't need to step in. That is why I'm here with community to ask you.
Speaker 2: The city had.
Speaker 4: Its own wage enforcement bill. Long Beach will set the example for all the theories. I thought your mother came my way. Years for the lawsuit to be thrown. Thank you for your time.
Speaker 7: Thank you. Next speaker.
Speaker 13: Hello, everybody. My name is Daniel. In areas. And I'd been working your parts for the last 15 years. I have a much history here. You know how much things have changed? Not much has changed for the positive. I have a say in how trucking companies have grown and how much more poverty. Poverty exists with my coworkers and other drivers from other companies. Many people think that truck drivers make a lot of money, but that is a lie. I mean, I'm here to give you just one example. I have been working for trucking companies for the last 13 years. During the whole time, I have been misclassified as an independent contractor. I haven't worked days. Shift sometime to work in 17 hours per day so that I can afford all the expenses that these companies for. Show me. Many times these charges are more than I. How make during the trips, which means that I take home a negative paycheck. That means I owe the company for working for them. I have fought for many years to change this, but I cannot do it alone. My coworkers and I have filed claims with the Department of Labor. We estimate that my claim is worth over $150,000. The company has retaliated against us by not giving us work, forcing us more and more into debt, more and more into poverty. When Syria is to help protect us against these companies. There are not just stealing from us, but also from the city, state and federal governments. In unemployment insurance. Workers. Compensations. In taxes. Workers like myself deserve to have our rising wages protected. We must have a local wage enforcement. Ending wage theft starts with with us. Ending wage theft starts with Long Beach. And lastly, I just want to add that this company is are. They're saying that they don't that they don't have money to pay the weight theft felonies, but they do have tons of millions to pay for their lawyers. That there are defending Dutch companies. There are some lawyers that they're making $600 plus an hour.
Speaker 7: Thank you. Thank you, sir.
Speaker 17: When I'm not sure. I mean, we'll give you. We will not be probative yet, Banyas.
Speaker 10: Good evening. My name is Matt Norris and I've been a Long Beach resident for 27 years.
Speaker 17: So the Familiar will see her story. I keep agenda for the mental in my local park with the lay of the land.
Speaker 10: I'm a father of two children. I'm here in support of having strong local wage theft enforcement.
Speaker 17: That will happen whenever they are. KATAYAMA Car Colors Think Winter in Puerto.
Speaker 10: And I am actually an ex worker of California Cartage warehouse that's found at the port.
Speaker 17: You get anything off within that principle in Long Beach?
Speaker 10: And whose headquarters is based in Long Beach?
Speaker 17: Hysterical citrus treasonous in La Compania. But he made a personal hint here of where I would look.
Speaker 10: And I worked there for 23 years, first as a temp worker and then as a direct.
Speaker 17: And the monarchy pulled royally salario killer wrong. I lost companeros Casey in the Commodores mill the mill valores what remind them of anything local movie Aldea event they're the life para troubadour.
Speaker 10: And one of the things that happens every day at this warehouse is more than $2,000 is not being paid to more than 100 workers per day. That's about at least $20 or more per person.
Speaker 17: Notably, we must check a contract, check a super familiar mythical penguin a.k.a Stella will never see the iconic role of Aladdin. The thing only para la la la la la la la la comin up a la Renta.
Speaker 10: And dealing with this were people that live paycheck to paycheck. In my family, you know, I have a daughter that goes to university and it's I can't afford to buy her books or pay the bills.
Speaker 17: So you know they lot companero it's almost como seeing companero former desperado he welcomed tambien desperado por pasada.
Speaker 10: And about 100 of my coworkers and myself were let go as a former retaliation.
Speaker 17: A loss for Gandhi, some of pearl center. But after Mahal ordered the level of their killer hung in the final Como La Porto.
Speaker 10: And we were organizing and had been organizing with the Warehouse Worker Resource Center that had taught us about our rights.
Speaker 17: Is almost beyond that of the guest of our brewery. They enforce our agenda. But I guess the goal of here.
Speaker 10: And we're asking you to make this a priority so that there's justice.
Speaker 13: You.
Speaker 17: Get okay program for it at that particular hearing on the theater host to get the poor area fertile.
Speaker 10: And that we're asking for you to use your force that you have this authority to improve things to do the right thing.
Speaker 17: You let them know how you think going the internal politics of mammoth.
Speaker 10: And we ask you for to help us since you have the power in your hands.
Speaker 0: Thank you.
Speaker 1: I want to welcome everybody. Okay. Before we continue, actually, I'm going to turn this back over to Vice Mayor Lowenthal, who's going to, in response to some of the conversation, is going to change the motion. And we're going to be able to have the discussion with fixing some of the issues at a later time. But. Vice Mayor.
Speaker 0: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And I wanted to thank everyone that's spoken so far. Many of you have come before this council and know that this council is extremely committed to raising the minimum wage. In fact, we have always been committed to that, and we're on a path and are on a responsible path. I'd like to thank Mr. Suarez for coming forward as representing our largest workers union. And you know that IAM means a lot to us. They are the backbone of this city. And and I know you mean well and you have good men and women here that have shown up to demonstrate how very committed they are. They are working day and night around the clock, some of them, but they are here tonight to express how much it means to them. And so I want to clarify something. I think it may have been a misunderstanding. This council has always, always wanted to include city employees. With the path that we're going down and to raise the minimum wage. I truly don't believe that there is anyone that's making less than state minimum wage, but that's okay. You know, we can differ on that, but I don't believe there is any one. We are committed to that. I made the motion earlier thinking and believing that a meeting confer process had not been scheduled and that that we were running out of time so that we had to adopt this. But you have graciously agreed to commit to a meet and confer process within 30 days. And I think it would behoove us if we can put this off until then and let the council vote on that. And I'm willing to change my motion to reflect that. And perhaps the city attorney can help me articulate it better than I did. But but thank you for raising the issue, and thank you for your commitment. Until today, I was not aware of that. And so that is the dynamics of council. You're welcome. Thank you.
Speaker 1: So. So the motion on the floor and I try to make sure I'm city attorney. The motion on the floor. Floor is to put this off for 30 days. And during that time, there's a commitment from I am. And we're asking city management to meet and confer so that we resolve this issue of of the wage, which we're all trying to get to. We're just trying to do it in a way that's legal. Right. Mr. City attorney.
Speaker 12: Mayor and vice mayor, if I understand your amendment to your original motion, then.
Speaker 1: I think it's just a new motion. She's not directing the ordinance to be.
Speaker 12: Changed in any other way. We're just going to delay it 30 days.
Speaker 1: Yes, it's just a throw. It's that way. Some of the other stuff that's getting brought up, we can have a conversation about, it's focused. We're just we just want to delay the any sort of implementation or drafting. We're going to wait 30 days at the minimum for process. And then I'll come back and have to have this discussion out there.
Speaker 0: And the council can go back and. Oh, go ahead. I'm sorry.
Speaker 1: Mr. City Attorney, as a secondary emotion.
Speaker 5: I agree. Oh.
Speaker 1: Mr. City attorney.
Speaker 0: You know, Councilmember Young and I just like one person. Okay.
Speaker 1: Okay. Thank you.
Speaker 0: So and Mr. Mayor, I. I saw that Mr. Suarez stood up. I will take that as a gentleman's handshake. Thank you. Thank you.
Speaker 1: Thank you. Thank you. And so there's a new there's a new motion and a second on that. And so what I what I'm going to ask and it's it's up there's a new motion. It's really up to you. This is going to come back, I promise. We have an opportunity to speak again. I'm also trying my very best, you know, the woman at the end who's been always the one to bring up living wages and support for workers and progressive issues, is being honored tonight by the LGBTQ community, and they're waiting for her to do something very special for her. And so I'm also hoping to to be able to give her that support. And so this will come back in 30 days, if there's any. Is there any public comment on the new motion? Just the new motion to give which which allows the I am more time to be confirmed. That's the motion, the seeing nonmembers. Please cast your votes.
Speaker 2: Motion carries.
Speaker 4: Okay.
Speaker 1: Thank you. The item will be back. Madam Clerk, back to the beginning of the agenda. Next item, please.
Speaker 12: You taking over?
Speaker 10: Go to see it all evening. To be able to speak.
Speaker 5: I'm sorry. They had been.
Speaker 10: Allowed to.
Speaker 1: Think he must come up. The motions were made in. The motions were passed. And so. Thank you. Next.
Speaker 5: I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Speaker 1: Oh, no, no. I'm not going to take comment from the audience this way. And so hold on a second. That's not the way it works. I actually just asked well, I ask, is there any public comment on the new motion before us? I didn't see anyone. So yeah, if you wanted to speak on it, absolutely can speak. But nobody said anything when I said, Are there any of the comments on the new motion? So please come forward.
Speaker 6: Well, I think. What? Hi, my name is Gary Hetrick. I reside in the fourth district. I think I think the what what we're trying to articulate here is that that the issues that we want to talk about, I think, are important for the council to hear as you deliberate over the next 30 days. And some of the things that that I wanted to raise and I think others want to raise, too, is certainly the wage theft is a huge issue. I mean, we can raise the minimum wage to $30 an hour, but if people aren't being paid, it doesn't matter where that number is. The other thing that I wanted to speak on I think is important is is this on.
Speaker 1: That earnings.
Speaker 6: Training wage. And I think this opens up the possibility for a great deal of. Well, it's it's a loophole. It allows employers in many industries to pay subminimum wages and get away with it for 480 hours. And that's that's a that's a huge now at six months and no other major city has that maximum. We need to have a cap. We need to have an age cap and we need to have a lower minimum that's consistent with other cities like Santa monica and Pasadena. It's you know, I also teach at I'm with the with the the Long Beach Coalition for Good Jobs in Health Community. I'm also a social geographer at Cal State Long Beach. And I have a lot of students who are trying to go to school and and make enough money to do that without going further into debt. So I think the minimum wage is certainly important, but we need to have these.
Speaker 1: Other conversations as part of this.
Speaker 6: Wage. That is certainly part of it. But also having a cap, an age cap, but also having a a lower number of, of, of hours attached to the, um, the training wage I'd like to see gotten rid of altogether. But that's up to you. But I think it needs to be taken very seriously. Thank you, Mayor Garcia, for allowing me to speak.
Speaker 7: Thank you very much. Next media.
Speaker 6: Good evening. My name is Alex Monahan, SS with the Filipino Migrant Center. I live at 2510 Magnolia Avenue. So the Filipino Migrant Center believes that raising the minimum wage in the city of Long Beach was won by hardworking residents, workers, community leaders and organizations who know firsthand the impacts of economic insecurity, unjust pay and inhumane working conditions are to the health and lives of children and families. A family's quality of life is directly linked to their economic standing. This victory belongs to them, and we want to make sure that it's not a policy passed only on paper, but implemented in reality. Our organization, together with other community organizations like.
Speaker 7: The Coalition to End Wage Theft in Long Beach.
Speaker 6: Have been outspoken about the widespread problem of wage theft. Existing labor laws. That are meant to protect workers are being circumvented and ignored by many employers every day. Violating employers are not afraid to break the laws because the laws are not strong enough to hold them accountable. Which is why we want to reemphasize to you the value of a local wage enforcement program and push you to invest in community partnerships because we are critical to making enforcement work. Community groups are already doing the work on the ground and are ready to work with you to solve this issue. We need properly funded community contracts to identify wage theft cases, to outreach to and educate workers and their community and to prepare evidence. San Jose is an example of what happens without investment in community contracts. Over the course of two years, even with 4.5 investigators, there were only eight valid claims. Community organizations are usually the ones hard at work, making sure that the local, state and national laws which serve to improve the lives of thousands of working families are enforced and that these same families understand how to advocate for their rights. It's very critical that we have local wage enforcement. For example, if we wait for the state wage enforcement, if you look at the numbers, even from the California Department of Labor from 2008 to 2011, there were over $31 million in unpaid judgments. That basically means that these were people who won their wage cases, but over 31 million was still not paid to them. That's how long it takes if we wait for state wage enforcement, which is why we need local wage enforcement now. So we urge you to take wage enforcement seriously in the same way you treat other forms of crimes that violate human rights of people and most importantly.
Speaker 7: Invest in our community. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Next speaker.
Speaker 10: Hello. My name is John Albury and I come here representing an organization called Gabrielle Los Angeles. And Gabrielle Los Angeles is an organization of women that protects and serves the rights and welfare of women. And I'm here in support of making sure that we have direct city led wage enforcement so that we have adequate funding for staffing and legal support to enforce the minimum wage. I'm here today. Earlier today, we heard a lot of speakers talk about violence in our communities. And I want to say that poverty and economic inequality is directly related to the violence that we experience in these communities. Poverty does not cause violence, but it creates the conditions that fosters it. So it is important to recognize that police violence and wage theft have something in common. They target the most vulnerable segments of our population. They target people of color, low wage workers, immigrants and women. And it's important that we are we we take our part in breaking the cycle of poverty that impacts these people as I'm representing them. Gabrielle I'm here today because many of my many of the members of this organization have experienced firsthand what it is to suffer as a result of earning poverty wages and having to take a leave from school because of financial reasons, of having to worry about if there's going to be food on the table to feed their families of living in debt from paying bills. They suffer from wage theft, which means being paid under the table, working overtime to pay, working long hours without compensation, not knowing when or if you're going to get paid, and being afraid of losing your job if you speak out once again, poverty does not cause violence, but it creates the conditions that foster it. Violence is a poverty form of violence. When you work in a job with poor labor standards like legal protections and face retaliation from their employers for speaking out. And why do these unjust labor practices persist? They persist because of practices, policies and policies that perpetuate and maintain this system of inequality, economic inequality and lack of wage enforcement. So that's why I'm here today to say, share with you all that. I hope that you choose the solution that that that's that addresses these issues of wage theft and ensures that people are able to to have their rights honored and and ends and protected. There has been a lot of proof that it's this works. If you look at San Francisco they recover 90.5% of the wages and interest owe to workers compared to 48% which was recovered by the state. And strong enforcement itself pays for itself. San Francisco recovered nearly 375,000 in penalties between 2010 and 2015. So it makes if anything, it's not just to serve the families that this impacts the most just to but to recover the lost tax revenue and feel the local economy. But I hope that I have appealed to your hearts today to as well that women no longer have to live in poverty, in fear for for for providing for their children and going to school. Thank you.
Speaker 7: Thank you very much. Next speaker and.
Speaker 6: Good evening, council members. My name is Eric Hancock. I live in the seventh district. And tonight I'm going to I want to speak to you all about the learners wage, because we need to be crystal clear. The learners wage is a wage theft. By proposing to pay new workers only 85% of the minimum wage for the first 480 hours. They work in an industry. You're proposing a legalized form of wage theft. That means for every $100 that is earned, $15 will be stolen from paychecks for their first six months on the job and 160 hours and which means two months is just as bad. With all due respect, let me ask you all, would you agree to receiving only 85% of what you earn for your first six months as a city council member or as city staff or as the mayor? Because good leaders would not subject people to anything they wouldn't do themselves. But what you're proposing will subject the people of Long Beach to a vicious cycle of unstable employment and exploitation. It will create a loophole for businesses to only hire new workers, squeeze out profit from them for six months, and discard and replace them with another underpaid new worker. The youth, immigrants and formerly incarcerated will be the most affected. The learners wage will not only disadvantage Long Beach workers, but it will also disadvantage responsible local businesses that offer long term employment to the community. Meanwhile, will benefit big chain retail and fast food employers that have a high turnover staffing model. And it'll force more Long Beach businesses to adopt this model as well just to compete. Is this what you want the future of Long Beach to look like? Is this something you want to add to your legacy when you all voted to raise the minimum wage in January? The working people of Long Beach, rejoiced by the inclusion of this provision, will essentially negate any increase for future workers. On behalf of the Filipino community, the youth and working families in Long Beach, I implore you to completely remove the learner's wage provision which would only mar this audience. Ordinance is also imperative. That you fund a local wage enforcement office so that this new minimum wage ordinance will have teeth. To make sure that employers abide by it. Otherwise. Workers will be stuck in the status quo of stolen wages and waiting 1 to 2 years of bureaucracy, waiting through 1 to 2 years of bureaucracy in the California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement for wage claims they may never see. With all sincerity, I urge you, don't take one step forward and take two steps back at the same time. Thank you.
Speaker 17: When I started. They all of my consiglio. I'll call later. Our hotel as you are Long Beach.
Speaker 10: Good evening to all council members, Mayor and workers of the City of Long Beach.
Speaker 17: Mino embrace Manuel de su reus. Just so you know professional Judith and were how locomotor ultima being the dressage news.
Speaker 10: My name is my name is my other horse's rails I am a professional truck driver and I've been a truck driver for the past 23 years.
Speaker 17: To run this at the computer I Ariake para la compania okay and our transportation that senor Bob Corey like conduce a negotiation of Puerto de Long Beach in Los Angeles.
Speaker 10: During this time I work for the K and our transportation company. For Mr. Bob Curry, who conducts businesses in the Long Beach and Los Angeles ports.
Speaker 17: Is toia qui presented para compartilhar como se scale rollers. Hilario not affect that at all of our holidays.
Speaker 10: And I am here with you to share how wage theft affects all workers.
Speaker 17: In a specific or personal school module. A role, salary or not. Dania and Trabelsi, you see, not being unlettered as I look.
Speaker 10: And I would like to share how it affects all people, specifically people like me. Wage theft affects not just our pockets, but also our health.
Speaker 17: Community, our high, lower middle class. If we go para la compania General Joe E Mi Familia Como Traveler my class. This class we go through for remote bastante pacifica porque no, Amos. Infamous brief basis.
Speaker 10: As a result of classification. Working for the company can are the stress, the tension and overwork. My family and I have suffer especially because I have suffer illnesses.
Speaker 17: Like consequential the salmonella classification as a stress but assume concerns you alone can sell alcohol give the era one article corazon I say those and even the Ramey say they were all.
Speaker 10: The results of the misclassified have caused me to have stress tension, being overworked and that caused me to have a heart attack and brain hemorrhage.
Speaker 17: El Problema. Ella Mala classification. El Rola Salario DNA. Muchos consecuencias.
Speaker 10: The issue of misclassification and wage theft has a lot of consequences.
Speaker 17: Kwementyaye Ali showed me casso the one activity and debris that emerged there.
Speaker 10: And as I have already mentioned in my case, this has been a case of life and death.
Speaker 17: And no particular mission to the Chozo Yuna Miyamoto asserted There is to be a thriller.
Speaker 10: I feel very happy and blessed to be alive today.
Speaker 17: Peru in amazement. Mujer Tristesse. A career comparison lead on Poco am historia Barracuda is a penguin with Rabbids literally meant to affect the player's Era+ go terror's proponent.
Speaker 10: But at the same time I am very sad and I want to let you know that our lives are literally affected by the laws and rules that you are proposing.
Speaker 17: To Recuperacion gracias, alla polo la familia. Ms.. Companeros imi colonia.
Speaker 10: I am now recuperating thanks to the support of my family, my coworkers and my community.
Speaker 17: Good thing or mutual. So in your scenario, mijo, just say I love you. Alpha Preparatory School. Swing Barrios College. Universidad Universities.
Speaker 10: I have a lot of dreams in my life. My son has already graduated from high school and he has been accepted to various college and universities.
Speaker 17: Miscellaneous player. Competition. I was young, ever so graduate the Altura that they all would Nakahara.
Speaker 10: My dream is to share in his graduation and to see him graduate from a career.
Speaker 17: A lower salary or to an exterminator.
Speaker 10: Wage theft has to end.
Speaker 17: Latoya, how did the long beach nomi tracing estate tratamiento.
Speaker 10: Long Beach workers do not deserve this treatment.
Speaker 17: As towards the Villafuerte il wrote this Hilario to indicate that I mean that investors you are.
Speaker 10: This is a matter of life and death. Wage theft has to end in this city.
Speaker 17: Which I. Yes.
Speaker 10: Thank you.
Speaker 7: Thank you. Next speaker. Good evening. My name is Gene Choi. I'm an attorney at the Los Angeles Alliance for New Economy. And I am the legal fellow of the campaign for Clean and Safe Ports. In a nutshell, my job is to represent drivers like Manuel, who I do represent, and to bring legal action, namely enforcement against the companies that have misclassified their drivers as independent contractors. And I'm here to make a very simple point. The point is that if at any point in discussing enforcement of the minimum wage law, there is a temptation to rely on the existing structures that are provided by, say, the California labor commissioner. Don't. Before I took on this position, I was a legal aid attorney. I ran a wage clinic. I saw thousands of drivers every year. Sorry, thousands of workers every year. From all industries. And what was abundantly clear. Was that? Julie Sue as a Labor Commissioner should be commended. For her efforts, but they are not enough. They're not enough, not just because of the realities of bringing a claim before the Labor Commissioner, but also because of the very visible gaps that continue to exist. Not just for wage theft in general. But for workers who are misclassified. So first, the logistics. I estimate that it usually takes anywhere from a year and a half to two years for a claim to make its way through the through the Labor Commissioner's office. It's an incredible amount of time. Moreover. Many cases that make it all the way through and result in judgments. Never see a dime. There have been studies on this by the UCLA Labor Center. In other words, the Labor Commissioner process. Though laudable, is very slow. And is ineffective in actually getting workers the wages that they were owed in the first place. The second point I'd like to make is. Even with all the enforcement the Labor Commissioner does. It doesn't take long to take a step back and ask. Is it enough? And it clearly is not. Los Angeles County remains the nation's capital for wage theft. An estimated $26 million in wages are stolen every week. Not every year. Every week. In terms of misclassification. Our ports have thousands of drivers who have an estimated $36,000 stolen from them every year. This exists despite the incredible efforts of the Labor Commissioner. So on that basis we ask you, please enforce the minimum wage. Thank you. Thank you.
Speaker 15: How? My name is Anthony Valencia.
Speaker 8: I want to thank you guys, council members for paying attention and listening to us. As you heard, all my coworkers and I say all coworkers because they're all working hard working people. You know, this fight to end wage theft, not only to enforce it, but as well as you guys already had approved it to raise it. We got to enforce it. And not only enforce it to stop these loopholes from happening, especially when one of my coworkers and other ones had said this training wage, that's just another way to take advantage of workers. These hardworking people. And I'm pretty sure that, like you said, if you guys were to take that cut, I don't think it would happen. And I hope you guys really paid attention and understand our struggle because it's real. It's here in Long Beach. It's happening every day. People are struggling every single day. And so you guys got to ask yourself, are you going to allow that to happen and keep on happening in your city? That's my concern. And I appreciate you guys really paying attention and listening and hopefully understand what we're coming from because this is a struggle that we are still battling every single day. Thank you.
Speaker 4: Hello. My name is Zoe Nicholson. I live in Rose Park. I'm going to go off script for a moment. Although I always write everything down. I want to notice who's here. Thank you. Thank you very much. I want to tell you that everyone here is hungry, too, and everyone here is tired, too. We're here. And I want to notice that you are too. Thank you. Over the last year, I've been to nine meetings about wages and never spoke. Until I found my voice at the meeting at Temple Israel, and I realized why I couldn't find my voice there. It's not an economic crisis. It's not a social crisis.
Speaker 13: It's a spiritual.
Speaker 4: Crisis. If we rise above our chairs will see. There are three types of speakers that line up here. There are professionals who tell us statistics and facts. There are the poor and the not poor. The professionals identify findings that.
Speaker 2: Tell us about other cities and.
Speaker 4: The effects of $15 on a worker's life and on owners business. The poor ask for relief, not for two costs of living, which would be much higher, but just the smallest promise of relief. The not poor talk, just steady payroll. So profits can remain, so businesses can grow, so customers won't go to nearby cities where unlivable wages remain. There's one group that has never discussed. And that's the half circle I see before me. That's the half circle of you. You're the gateway, the elected voters. You are the ones who receive our pleas. We line up and ask you to weigh our stories. You are the ones who measure possible outcomes. And I want to remind you that this is not political. This is.
Speaker 5: Not social. In fact, this is spiritual.
Speaker 4: This is your call for an ethical thread to address the risk, to actually exercise your moral compass.
Speaker 5: Collective and individual as a serious speaker.
Speaker 4: A social ethicist, and initiate a Buddhist monk. Let me offer you one small insight. You earned our votes, and you sit in this half circle. You are a gateway of deciders. And the fact is, you are called to.
Speaker 5: This holy position, this sacred trust.
Speaker 4: And I believe in you. I trust you. You're going to do the right thing. Thank you very much.
Speaker 7: Thank you. Let's begin.
Speaker 3: Good evening, counsel. My name is Graciela Lopez Reyes, and I am faith rooted organizer with.
Speaker 10: Clue or clergy and lately United for Economic Justice. I am here because CLU is deeply invested in this community and we as a faith community have walked alongside many workers affected by wage theft. We have come across stories of workers who are paid below the minimum wage, denied overtime, receive bad checks or worse, not paid at all . A job should ensure that workers make enough to provide for their families, but instead waste of ensures that those who are vulnerable in poor will stay vulnerable in poor. And this is an injustice. Workers, families and community members are here today because they want you to acknowledge their work, their sacrifice, and that wage step is real in this city. I want to invite community members who are here in support of workers to please stand up and show City Council your labor of love story. The hearts that you see here tonight represent the labor in the struggle of workers in their families in our city. For years, we as a community of faith have stood time and time again with poor truck drivers, with hotel workers, with warehouse workers to through their struggle for justice. And we will continue to stand with them until the prophet Amos says, until as the Prophet Amos says, justice rolls down like waters in right hands, in righteousness like an ever flowing stream. You all, as our nimble elected officials, have the ability to facilitate change. We need wage enforcement in our community. And I ask you.
Speaker 3: To please do justice.
Speaker 10: Thank you.
Speaker 7: Thank you. Next you. Good evening. Sorry.
Speaker 6: Alex Montano says from the Filipino Migrant Center. One last additional comment I wasn't able to make. If you look at the city ordinance, it did talk about when a worker files a wage claim with the.
Speaker 7: Excuse me, sir, you know, you've already been to the diocese. You can't come back and so on. Yes. Okay. Thank you very much. So. All right. So, city manager, we've already voted on this. Okay, fine. So we'll go to the next item.
Recommendation to review draft ordinance amending the Long Beach Municipal Code by adding Part IV to Title 5; and by adding Section 5.06.020.A.7, all relating to a Long Beach Minimum Wage Ordinance, and provide further direction.  (Citywide)