Two assembly members, Evan Low (D-Dist. 28) and Cristina Garcia (D-Dist. 58), recently proposed a new bill for California workers. Still yet to be approved by the state legislature, this specific bill is reportedly said to ‘reduce the typical work week from its current 40 hours to just 32 hours.’ Officially announced to the public earlier this past week, the latest development on the west coast will apply to businesses that currently obtain at least 500 employees, while also accommodating those who work for individual unions.
“After two years of being in the pandemic, we have had over 47 million employees leave their job looking for better opportunities,” Garcia stated during an exclusive interview with CBS News. “They are sending a clear message that they want a better work-life balance — they want better emotional and mental health, and this is part of that discussion.” With this note, Garcia is simply attempting to vocalize the true reasons as to why the state has chosen to make this change consideration.
The idea of decreasing the average work week is not new to California: These thoughts initially occurred when the COVIS-19 pandemic was at its peak. However, a lecturer at the UDC Gould School of Law, Thomas Lenz, stated that the bill “may create cost and operational hurdles for employers struggling to meet staffing goals.” He continued with, “Should the legislation pass, employers with over 500 employees might consider scaling back their operations to minimize risk and potential exposure.”