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Grocers Assn. Plans To Appeal Ruling That Upheld $4-An-Hour 'Hero Pay' Raise In Long Beach
Outside an Aldi grocery store on Atlantic Ave. in Long Beach, signs read "heroes work here."
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Megan Garvey/LAist
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The California Grocers Association plans to appeal a judge's ruling this week to uphold a "Hero Pay" ordinance in Long Beach. The city law orders grocery stores in the city to give their workers an extra $4 dollars-an-hour during the pandemic.
Here's Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia today:
"We think that a $4 dollar-an-hour pay bump increase is very reasonable for all these grocery workers that have been working so hard. It is only temporary. So this is a four month, 120 day ordinance, and it's absolutely the right thing to do."
When the ruling was announced Thursday, Garcia tweeted:
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Amazing news. We just won our lawsuit and our $4 an hour Hero Pay remains in place for grocery workers. Standing up for hardworking people is always the right thing to do. 🎉
— Robert Garcia (@RobertGarcia) February 26, 2021
The CGA argued the ordinance went against the collective bargaining process and excluded other frontline workers.
In a statement, CGA President Ron Fong said:
"The Court... stated that its decision was limited. We remain confident that these extra pay ordinances will not withstand legal scrutiny."
Fong also said the CGA believed the ordinances "will result in unintended consequences like higher grocery prices for customers and store closures, which are already happening in Long Beach and which will harm grocery workers and consumers."
After the measure passed last month, Ralphs announced it would close two locations in Long Beach.
The CGA is also suing to block similar hero pay laws in Montebello and West Hollywood and has a released a study the organization commissioned on the subject.
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