Irvine City Council member Kathleen Treseder has a remarkably impressive resume. As a University of California Irvine professor, she “leads an internationally recognized research program studying how climate change affects endangered ecosystems and our society,” per her bio. She would be a go-to source on issues regarding ecology, but we probably wouldn’t consult with her on, say, how a local grocery store ought to run its business.
Yet Treseder proposed an ordinance that would require grocery stores that change ownership to keep the same workers on staff for 90 days. State law already includes such a requirement for stores with more than 15,000 square feet of retail space. This bill would apply to smaller stores within the city that have more than 300 employees nationwide.
The likely target is Mother’s Market and Kitchen, which is the focus of a union organizing effort, according to a Register report. It would also apply to Trader Joe’s, whose stores generally are smaller than the state’s square-footage threshold. These ordinances, which have sprouted in various localities, are the handiwork of grocery-worker unions. Other Orange County cities have proposed various worker-related regulations for grocery stores.
In a letter to Mayor Larry Agran, who supports the proposal, the California Grocers Association argues, “Irvine would be claiming expertise in food safety standards it does not have.” CGA complains that, “There has been no effort by the city or author to engage or discuss this proposal with the grocery industry or impacted grocers.” The city memo describing the ordinance says it would promote better “health and safety standards,” but it’s obviously just a job-protection measure — and one that will discourage such businesses in the city.
One would think the five supportive members, none of whom has any apparent background in the grocery industry, would have at least consulted with the businesses they seek to regulate. What would Treseder say if a legislative body tried dictating staffing levels at UCI’s climate-change program without consulting with scholars or administrators? The council ought to stay in its lane and out of private union vs. management matters.