Recommendation to declare ordinance amending the Long Beach Municipal Code by adding Chapter 8.110 relating to COVID-19 paid supplemental sick leave; declaring the urgency thereof; and declaring that this ordinance shall take effect immediately, read and adopted as read. (Ordinance No. ORD-20-0017).  (Citywide)
Communication from City Attorney Recommendation to declare ordinance amending. The Long Beach Minimum Code relating to COVID 19 paid supplements or sick leave, declaring the urgency thereof to make the ordinance effective immediately. Write the first time and lead over to the next regular meeting of the City Council for Final Reading City Wide. Hey, I have a motion by Councilmember Richardson. Can I get a second? Second? Goodbye. Councilman's in Dallas. I'm sorry, Richardson. Thank you. I want to start just with a brief, brief walkthrough from the apartment. Thank you, Mayor. Members of the council. Aaron Wizner, McKinley from the city attorney's office will present the ordinance before you tonight. The the issue here is, again, as the other two were, is presented to you both as an urgency ordinance and as a regular ordinance for the council's consideration. Aaron. Good evening, mayor and council members before you, is the COVID 19 paid supplemental sick leave ordinance? The ordinance at the direction of council is prepared to serve as a gap filler to the Federal Act that was enacted on April 1st, the Corona Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The ordinance works as a gap filler by extending the 80 hours of sick leave provided in the Federal Act to full time employees that have businesses or workers here in Long Beach and have 500 employees or more nationally. The act also, per the request of Council, has a proportional sick leave provision for part time employees. The Act also includes an exemption for collective bargaining agreements and a 90 day report back and otherwise. The language of the ordinance. Tracks that of the Federal Act for which we are grappling. I'm happy to take any questions the Council may have. Councilmember Richardson. Thank you. I think the presentation really aligns with city council. Was it an hour long deliberation here? We wanted to fill the gap and cover companies that were 500 employees and both nationally and this ordinance does that. We want to clarify in this that a number of our companies, 500 above already offer a certain program that was lifted up in the conversation. And I think it needs to be clarified here that if a company already provides a minimum of 160 hours of paid sick leave, and that employer is exempt from this process, and I want to make sure that's reflected in my motion. So I'm going to make a motion here, a move to adopt the recommended emergency ordinance. In addition and in addition, clarifying that if an employee has a paid leave or paid leave off the policy that provides a minimum of 160 hours of paid leave annually, the employer is exempt from any obligation provide supplemental leave pursuant to the order of that employee that received a more generous paid leave. And that's my motion. Mayor and mayor, members of the council it's Charlie Parker and again that that we can certainly add that and that is I believe in LA's ordinance currently but it will require this to come back for a new first reading. Thank you. Councilmember Zendaya's. Thank you very much to staff and to all the councilmembers for being open to such an ordinance like this. This is a very crucial time for, you know, for for us. And so, you know, thank you for thinking of all those who who might be sick or might be affected by so much. So thank you again for considering this ordinance and for all of the work that's been put into it. Thank you. And Councilwoman Pryce. Councilwoman Price. Yes. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Oh, hey. Can someone explain again the covered employers? I know we talked about franchisee. Okay, Charlie or Gary, can you please reiterate what the city's under your understanding as a franchisee and whether this one applies them to the city of Long Beach? Councilmember prices. Aaron Wiener McKinley and I'll try to respond to Aaron. No, no, not a problem. I'll respond to the inquiry. So the intention, I think from the last meeting where we were giving direction on this item was to to gap fill the. The Federal Act doesn't talk about the application of the act in terms of franchisees or non franchisees. There's an evaluation that must be made based on the intertwined nature of operations. On whether they will identify themselves within the as having more or less than 500 employees. And I think part of the desire of this ordinance is to get fill. So if there is a selection based on how you understand your operations, that you do not fall within the five, you're not 500 or less employees and would not be subject to the Federal Act. Then you would be captured by the City of Long Beach's ordinance because you've already made that election that you do not fall within the Federal Act. Okay. Got it. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. I think I have a. Oh, yeah. On page eight. Line 16. I'd like to make a friendly to change the language instead of the words can work from home. My recommendation would be to change it to you have the option to work from home. I think it makes it a little bit cleaner and it provides the employee an option. Councilmember. As long as the city attorney says it doesn't matter, it seems minor shouldn't trigger another first reading. Is that right, Mr. City? Time the option would be at the discretion of employer. And the point of this portion of the of the ordinance is to make clear that the sick leave obligations only apply when an employee is unable to work from home, whether that's the contours of their job duties or their wellness. Requirements and the. Like, they were saying, I see what you're saying. Okay. So they they literally it's not that they're given the option to work from home. They're literally they can work from home. That's not healthy enough to do so. Yeah, I got it. Okay. Never mind that. Never mind, then. Thank you. Okay. So we have a motion in a second on the floor. Uh, let me go with that. It's been amended by Councilman Richardson. Councilmember Pierce. I'm good. I fully support the motion of this. Councilwoman Mongo. Councilwoman Mongo. Hi. Hey, can you hear me? Hello? Yes. Oh, okay. I just wanted to verify that there's a clause that allows for employers who are already. Offsetting that provision that that that's included in the ordinance. Councilmember Mongo, page nine on line 11, it's section 8.110.080 includes an employer offset section and that allows for employers who have provided sick leave hours to have an hour, four hour offset for every hour of sick leave provided for a COVID related reason. Beginning on the beginning of the pandemic, which was March 4th, 2020. And going forward. Perfect. I appreciate that. That was really important. Have a great day. Thank you. And now we'll do a roll call vote. District one. District two. I. District three. All. By District four, by district five. Hi. District six. All right. District seven. I District eight. The vote in your district nine. I. Motion carries. Thank you. Thank you for that. Now we're going to go back to the other items on the agenda next to item 11.