SEIU: ‘California’s Fourth Branch of Government’
CABIA takes on SEIU ahead of A.B. 1228 vote with dynamic new ad
By Katy Grimes, July 11, 2023 1:42 pm
AB 1228 by Assemblyman Chris Holden (D-Los Angeles) proposes to make small business franchise owners jointly legally liable for any alleged labor law violations with larger corporate brands that have little to do with employment decisions.
“This bill increases fast food franchisors’ legal accountability for their franchisees’ compliance with labor standards through, among other things, imposition of joint and several liability on the franchisor for specified labor violations and other violations committed by the franchisee,” according to bill analysis.
Fortunately it just stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee, but don’t count the backers of this business-killing bill cooked just yet.
The California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA), a coalition of state business owners who are vociferous critics of California’s broken labor laws, have taken on big labor in the state with a new full page advertisement in the Sacramento Bee, calling it “The Four Branches of Government:
230709_CABIA_FourBranchesOfGovernmentAd_SacramentoBee_9.94x20.5-2
CABIA’s ad coincided with the California Senate Judiciary Committee vote Tuesday on the Fast Food Franchisor Responsibility Act – AB 1228.
The Globe spoke with Tom Manzo, founder and president of CABIA, and owner of a mid-sized manufacturing business with approximately 200 employees. Manzo told the Globe CABIA is saying the truth aloud because too many other trade groups and associations are unwilling to, while fooling themselves into believing they have a seat at the negotiating table.
The ad condemns the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) as California’s fourth branch of government as they continue to pull the strings, affecting businesses in the state. The SEIU has been the driving force behind various pushes to expand union power over California’s businesses, including the halted FAST Recovery Act of 2022.
Manzo said AB 1228 is unfairly targeting franchise owners, based on the SEIU’s campaign against these businesses, falsely alleging they are responsible for a disproportionately high number of wage violations in California.
This comes as the California State Budget also threatens to resurrect the Industrial Welfare Commission (IWC), which gives the power to sidestep public opinion against unpopular, anti-business policies – something the SEIU has applauded.
As Globe contributor Chris Micheli wrote in a recent op ed, “The IWC has been inoperative for many years and not funded – until now. The June 24, 2023 amendments to AB/SB 102 (Budget Bill Junior) would fund the IWC with $3 million.”
“The California legislature has been under the influence of labor unions who care more about their own bottom line than they do about employees or small business owners,” Manzo said. “AB 1228 would make small business franchise owners jointly liable for any alleged labor law violation – forcing larger brands to limit independence of franchise owners and small business ownership opportunities.”
“Enough is enough,” Manzo said. “Big labor is controlling everything here – no one can breathe.”
What happens is small to medium businesses always take the hits when big labor unions meddle. “AB 5 created a complete mess for everybody,” Manzo said. “But especially the small and medium sized businesses.”
“And now they want to unionize the fast food industry.”
Monday in the Orange County Register, Parag Patel, who owns 11 Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin’ franchises in Orange and Riverside Counties, said in a compelling op ed:
AB 1228 “would destroy new franchising opportunities and existing licensees, like me, could lose our livelihoods. This would be a tremendous loss since the franchise model provides a unique opportunity for entrepreneurs – many of whom are women, people of color, immigrants, and veterans. According to the International Franchise Association, franchised businesses are 31% minority-owned, compared to just 19% minority-owned in non-franchised businesses.”
Manzo said he wishes more established trade associations would speak out forcefully against the labor unions and the constant threat of unionization.
The Globe has reported for many years on trade associations and organizations which have fought business-killing legislation like AB 32, California’s Global Warming Solutions Act. But they delude themselves if they really think they have a seat at the negotiating table with the Democrat supermajority. As the California Air Resources Board has demonstrated with AB 32, most businesses have been bulldozed by volumes of impossible regulations and laws created out of whole cloth by unelected bureaucrats, forcing many businesses to close.
“The ad is to send a message that the majority of business is small to medium size, and are tired of the minority telling us what to do,” Manzo said.
Notably, Manzo said businesses with labor union agreements usually don’t have to labor under the same strict state labor laws they force on other non-union private sector businesses – they receive exemptions in unholy deals with Democrat lawmakers.
For more information on California’s Fourth Branch of Government and how to fight it, visit CABIA.org
CABIA is calling out unscrupulous trial attorneys, paid politicians, and their allies that want to maintain the status quo in California. Our lawsuit tracker is the only one of its kind that provides public data on the amount of Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) suits law firms file each year. We also publish information on which politicians are backed by trial lawyer advocacy groups and other interests groups that would like to keep PAGA intact.
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Glad to see some serious push back! Not sure why being a minority owned business has anything to do with it (quote from Orange County Register article). As if it’s any less tragic for someone who is white to lose their livelihood. Wonder what percentage of these minority owned businesses have been voting Democrat for many years and are somehow shocked now that the Democrat communists are coming for them! Unfortunately the only way the majority blind and stupid California voters are going to wake up is when it’s their own lives that are being disrupted.
Yes!
That is truth in print!
SEIU at the top of the chart is no exaggeration!
Appreciate this update from Katy Grimes about this destructive and un-American bill, AB 1228, from Asm Chris Holden. We know it has disastrous implications for business beyond fast-food franchises should it become law. This maddening interference that will harm and maybe destroy these businesses harms all of the rest of us too. So it is WONDERFUL to see CABIA’s advertisement (YES!) as well as the other outcry that targets the villain of the piece, the ruinous SEIU. Wish CABIA great success in this and will be checking them out.
It wouldn’t hurt for these legislators to hear from all of us too on this bill. Good to hear it’s stalled in committee for now but that’s no guarantee, as Katy noted.
This is commie stuff. No surprise because SEIU are commies. We CANNOT have this.
It’s in the Senate now, so contact your Senator and tell them to Vote NO on AB 1228 if it should come before them. If you’ve done it before do it again.
Find and contact your Senator here:
https://www.senate.ca.gov/senators
AB 1228.
“Why California’s Fast Food is Getting More Expensive” – California Insider interviews Hank Adler
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilDFAnNuRQE
Take a look at this video if you have time (30 mins) and need more convincing, which I suspect most readers here do not. Guest Hank Adler points out that legislation like this will not only very negatively affect the fast food industry but will set a precedent for all small business in the state.
Forgive me — I should have clarified that the video above is specifically about AB 257, where a so-called “fast-food council” will establish minimum standards for the fast food industry on wages, working hours, and working conditions. It was jointly authored by Assembly Members Chris Holden, Wendy Carrillo, Evan Low, and Luz Rivas. AB 257 was passed and signed by Newsom but is now ON HOLD. The affected restaurant industry got busy, successfully challenged it and my understanding is that it qualified for the Nov. 2024 ballot. So we will be able to vote on it then.
AB 1228, discussed here, is a cousin of that bill.
SEIU is the worst. I was a government employee for over twenty years and forced to be in SEIU until my position was reclassified as confidential. That was a happy day for me.
SEIU dues are not a flat fee, they are a percentage of wages. The employee gets a raise and SEIU gets a portion of the raise. You are either a member or a fee payer without union voting rights. To stay on top of things, I was a steward and a negotiator for most of those years.
There are no benefits for your dues other than a representative who drags out negotiations, rude to the management team, and wants strikes and protests. That was my experience with a couple of SEIU representatives. It is as though they are trained to agitate. My view, as a government employee, there is no need for government workers to be in a union. SEIU represents a large portion of California government employees. How is it that SEIU works with legislators to draft legislation benefitting SEIU, is not a conflict of interest?
I would think this needs to be investigated. Quid pro quo? It has the appearance of impropriety and corruption.
Remember when Alma Hernández, former executive director of SEIU California, who resigned in 2021 after being charged by the state Attorney General’s Office with multiple counts of tax fraud, embezzlement, perjury and failure to pay unemployment insurance taxes? The only ones who really benefit from unions like SEIU are the union bosses who live the high life off the union worker dues?
Businesses withering away is just one more assault on California’s withering tax base. Inflation is killing small business, and SEIU is going for the kill-shot. It is a particularly good time for SEIU because the Trump economy is gone, replaced by the Biden economy, and everyone but drug cartels are too weak to fight.
McDonalds and Taco Bell and 7-11 will be the all that is left.