California Adopts New Lead Exposure Regulations

On February 15, 2024, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted to approve proposed amendments to Cal/OSHA’s Lead Standards (California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 8 (T8), Sections 1532.1 (for the Construction Industry) and 5198 (for General Industry).

The approved amendments for T8 CCR 1532.1 and T8 CCR 5198 were filed with the California Secretary of State on April 8, 2024, and will be enforced starting January 1, 2025.

Employers should review their existing procedures and programs and the guidance resources provided by the State to ensure that workers are protected.

The Cal/OSHA webpage only provides an overview — not all the requirements — of T8 CCR sections 1532.1, 5155, and 5198. The information provided is not meant to be a substitute for, nor a legal interpretation of, the regulations. Readers are cautioned to refer directly to sections 1532.1 and 5198 for detailed information regarding the regulation's scope, specifications, exceptions, and other requirements that may apply to their operations.

The website includes specific Occupational Lead Exposure Prevention for the Construction Industry:

• Cal/OSHA Occupational Lead Exposure Prevention in the Construction Industry – New information and materials related to the Cal/OSHA Lead in Construction standard.
• Lead Work Notification – New information on lead work notification.
• Lead Exposure Assessment & Incident Reporting – New information on reporting lead exposure.
• Educational Materials and Other Resources – New fact sheets, videos and fillable written safety plans.
• Coming soon will be Frequently Asked Questions About Lead in Construction – FAQs on Occupational Lead in Construction Industry and more.

WECA will provide updates as they become available.

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Elections Have Consequences, and How! [From various sources including Labor Union News]

Following President-Elect Trump’s pick of Lori Chavez-DeRemer — a one-term, pro-union Republican member of the House of Representatives — as his Secretary of Labor at the urging of Teamsters president Sean O’Brien, Bloomberg’s Josh Eidelson penned a piece about the nomination recently. While the article itself covered her nomination overall, many readers may have missed a one-line statement about the now (presumably) doomed Protecting the Right to Organize Act (aka PRO Act), which is this:

The bill went nowhere in the Republican-controlled House and fared little better in the narrowly Democratic Senate, though the Teamsters are working with US Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, a Trump ally, to develop a more GOP-friendly alternative.

If a more “GOP-friendly alternative” to the PRO Act exists, it is hard to see where.

As written, the PRO Act has many provisions that are anathema to most of the business community and millions of Americans who earn their living as independent contractors.

Within the existing version of the PRO Act are such provisions as:

·        The elimination of "right-to-work” states, which would require millions of workers to pay union dues or agency fees or be fired from their jobs

·        Dictating wages and benefits upon unionized private-sector businesses through government-mandated arbitration 120 days after becoming unionized.

·        Foisting the so-called ABC Test on independent contractors and the businesses that use them. The ABC Test is what California’s AB5 codified in 2020 (when it went into effect), resulting in thousands of independent contractors in California losing their income. If put into effect at the national level, it may, in practical terms, "kill” the gig economy.

·        Allow unions to unionize so-called “micro-units” (such as an employer’s individual departments or specific job classifications)

·        Change the definition of “joint employment” and force businesses, including franchisors and franchisees, to alter their structures or face liability

There is more to the PRO Act than that which is listed above.

However, regardless of politics, it seems almost impossible for a compromise bill that would please Mr. O’Brien and his union cohorts and be “GOP-friendly” to the extent that it will not cause injury to businesses and the American workforce.

Engineering News-Record took a slightly less jaundiced view of Chavez-DeRemer, calling her a “US Lawmaker With Bipartisan Voting Record.” Their article quoted House GOP Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) who praised the nomination, posting on social media that “Lori will be a fierce advocate for our country’s incredible workforce as she executes” the incoming administration’s agenda. And Mark Takano (D-Calif.) also praised the nomination, saying "I served with her on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and her support of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act is indicative of her willingness to stand with working men and women.” However, ABC, one of the few construction trade groups that endorsed Trump, raised the nominee’s support for pro-union policy as a concern. “We are interested in understanding Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer’s views on the Protecting the Right to Organize Act and other issues ... as she embarks on her confirmation process,” Kristen Swearingen, vice president of legislative and political affairs, said. ABC-affiliated Coalition for a Democratic Workplace stated alarm over the appointment.

CDR narrowly lost a swing seat in Oregon in November but, according to the San Joaquin Valley Sun, “managed to wow the 45th and 47th President in an interview at Mar-A-Lago, simultaneously picking up critical endorsement from a surprising corner: the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.”

The appointment is also a surprise win for the San Joaquin Valley, with Chavez-DeRemer's longtime ties to the region – including her alma mater Fresno State – getting national play heading into Trump's return to Washington.

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Workers Compensation Mandate: Change in 2025?

Roofers have been mandated to have workers comp for many years, but recently, the legislature amended Business and Professions Code (BPC) §7125 to require additional contractors to always have a certificate of workers’ compensation (WC) insurance or certificate of exemption on file with the CSLB as a condition of licensure. A contractor may file an exemption if they certify they have no employees. Five license classifications are precluded from filing an exemption. They must have WC on file regardless of whether they have employees (C-8 Concrete, C-20 Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning, C-22 Asbestos Abatement, C-39 Roofing, and D-49 Tree Service contractors). All licensees, regardless of classification or whether they have employees, will be required to hold WC insurance beginning January 1, 2028. But a change may occur in 2025. More

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Labor Department Releases Guide to Combat Harassment in Construction

• The U.S. Department of Labor has released a new guide focused on combatting harassment in construction.
• Issued by DOL’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), the guide is aimed at helping federal contractors understand the agency’s jurisdiction, clarifying what constitutes harassment and providing information to workers who may experience harassment, OFCCP announced Nov. 21.
• The agency had been planning to release the guide for several months as part of the White House’s National Strategy on Gender Equity and Equality, a DOL spokesperson told Construction Dive. “OFCCP developed this guide for employers and workers because harassment in construction remains a common issue,” the spokesperson said via email.

More

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What to Do If Immigration Agents Come to Your Job Site Last month, President-elect Donald Trump named Tom Homan, former acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as his “border czar.” Homan has promised that the incoming administration will increase workplace raids as part of its broader immigration plan. It’s not clear yet which industries would be most affected, but there are clues from Trump’s first term. More

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OFCCP Reinstates the Federal Government Construction Contractor and Subcontractor Monthly Employment Utilization Reports On November 25, 2024, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced it was reinstating the revised Monthly Employment Utilization Report (CC-257). Employers with a federal construction contract or subcontract and/or federally assisted construction contract or subcontract in excess of $10,000 must complete and submit monthly Form CC-257 reports to OFCCP. The first report will cover the calendar month of March 2025 and is due April 15, 2025. More

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Wage theft in construction? CalMatters reports “Attorney General Rob Bonta is getting tough on wage theft on behalf of allies in organized labor. At a [recent] press conference in Los Angeles, Bonta announced a felony complaint against US Framing West, a Kentucky-based wood framing company, and two of its employees, alleging 31 counts of grand theft, payroll tax evasion, prevailing wage theft, and filing false documents. Bonta: “For some reason, US Framing West seems to think it can operate outside the prevailing wage laws of California. I’m here with a simple message: They cannot. No company can.” As CalMatters Inland Empire reporter Deborah Brennan explains, US Framing West secured several jobs on large construction projects in California between 2018 and 2022, subcontracting out the labor to unlicensed operators who allegedly underpaid workers by tens of thousands of dollars. Bonta also accused the company of failing to pay more than $2.5 million in state payroll taxes over that period. Notably, the case came to the attorney general’s office through complaints from construction unions. Lorena Gonzalez, president of the California Labor Federation, appeared alongside Bonta at Tuesday’s press conference, where she called for jail time for wage theft violations. Tending to that relationship is smart politics for Bonta, who is expected to soon enter the 2026 race for governor. In an already crowded and largely undefined field, winning the backing of organized labor could offer a significant boost.

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Overturning Precedent: NLRB’s Game Changing Decisions and the Impact on Employers This podcast features an in-depth discussion with Littler attorneys Maura Mastrony and Jonathan Levine about recent decisions from the National Labor Relations Board that overturned decades of precedent and what employers might expect moving forward. Podcast

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District Court Vacates Biden’s Overtime Final Rule On November 15, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas vacated and set aside the Department of Labor’s (DOL) overtime final rule. The rule is now invalidated nationwide. The final rule made three changes to the overtime regulations, all of which are more fully explored in a previous post:

·        Increased the minimum salary threshold and highly compensated employee (HCE) threshold on July 1, 2024;

·        Increased the thresholds again on January 1, 2025; and

·        Implemented triennial automatic updates to both thresholds.

The decision vacated all three provisions.

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New Face at the Contractors State Licensing Board: Josef Preciado, Sacramento, Democrat, economic and small business representative III at Sacramento Municipal Utilities District since 2024. Salary: $100 per diem.

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California Law Imposes New Disclosure Obligations on Employers Conducting Voluntary Child Labor Audits On September 22, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 3234 (“AB 3234”), which requires employers to disclose the results of audits on child labor practices. Specifically, effective January 1, 2025, AB 3234 requires employers that “voluntarily” conduct a “social compliance audit” to determine whether child labor is involved in the employer’s “operations or practices” to publish the audit findings on the company website. AB 3234 offers very little guidance on these disclosure duties. Indeed, it leaves critical compliance details unclear, including, for example, the deadline for posting reports after an audit, the jurisdictional scope of where the audits occurred, how long the report must remain online, and any penalties for non-compliance. We may see guidance from the California Labor Commissioner clarifying these and other unclear points. Until then, employers will face the difficult task of complying with an ambiguous law. More

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The Power of Money in Politics A courageous Foster City councilmember recently wrote about tainted government. He observed, “We can learn firsthand the value or return on investment that can be gained by special interest groups that fill coffers of political candidates. Construction trades are heavily involved financially in political elections, even at the local level. Let’s be honest, endorsements and financial support given by special interests come with an expectation. To think otherwise is simply naive.” Article

Gavin Newsom Convenes Legislative Session to Resist Trump Governor Gavin Newsom announced Thursday that he is calling a special session of the Legislature to strengthen the state’s legal defenses against President-elect Donald Trump. Newsom said Trump’s campaign statements and first-term policies on abortion, electric vehicles, immigration, and disaster aid warranted immediate legislative powers ahead of lawmakers' planned return to Sacramento. Lawmakers are already scheduled to return to Sacramento at the start of December to prepare for next year's session. Newsom's proclamation calls explicitly for the special session to authorize more funding for Attorney General Rob Bonta and state agencies to combat Trump's actions. Newsom billed it “the first of several actions” he and lawmakers would take against Trump. Legislative leaders issued statements in lockstep with the governor. “California has come too far and accomplished too much to simply surrender and accept his dystopian vision for America,” state Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire said in a statement. “Voters sent a clear message this election, and we need to lean in and listen,” Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas said. “But we also must be prepared to defend California values, no matter the challenges ahead.”

California Business Roundtable President Rob Lapsley issued the following statement in response to the special session: 

“On Election Day, California voters rejected attacks on Prop. 13 (Prop. 5), rejected increasing the minimum wage (Prop. 32) and rejected attempts to drive up the cost of housing even higher (Prop. 33). Cost of living was clearly on voters’ minds not just in California, but across the nation, and voters are demanding that leaders focus on affordability first. [A] special session should focus on addressing issues like the imminent gas price increase through the state’s renewal of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, the 108% increase in residential electricity prices since 2010, the ongoing homeowner’s insurance crisis, the ongoing housing crisis, and other costs directly affecting family budgets and Californians’ ability to live and thrive in this great state.”

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Four Employment Actions to Expect Under a Second Trump Presidency Littler predicts the new Trump administration will have at least four fundamental policy shifts starting inauguration day.

1.     Immigration enforcement raids will be back on the table.

2.     Agency chairs will be replaced.

3.     Regulatory activity will slow considerably.

4.     Limitations on DEI could be put in place.

Story

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Election News

California State-Wide Race

Adam Schiff Easily Wins U.S. Senate Schiff, a Burbank Democrat, cruised to victory in California’s U.S. Senate race against Steve Garvey, a former Los Angeles Dodger/ San Diego Padre seeking to become the first Republican elected statewide in 18 years. Schiff won a six-year term to replace Sen. Laphonza Butler, who opted not to run herself after she was appointed following the death of Dianne Feinstein, who held the seat for more than 30 years. Schiff also defeated Garvey in a separate but simultaneous race to fill the remainder of Feinstein’s term, which expires in early January. That gives him a head start in seniority over other newly elected U.S. senators.

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California District Races

California’s 41st Congressional District The highly competitive U.S. House race in Riverside County between Republican Rep. Ken Calvert, the longest-serving GOP member of California’s congressional delegation, and Democrat Will Rollins, a former federal prosecutor, is still too close to call. The race between Calvert and Rollins to represent California’s 41st Congressional District, which stretches from the sprawling city of Corona to the resorts and golf courses of the Coachella Valley, had been considered a toss-up. It was one of several California races seen as influential in determining which party will control the U.S. House of Representatives next year. At press time, Calvert leads by 2-1/2% (7,000 votes).

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47th Congressional District The race between Republican Scott Baugh and Democratic State Sen. Dave Min for the open House seat in coastal Orange County remains too close to call as votes continue to be counted. California’s 47th Congressional District is currently held by Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, who will be leaving Congress in January. Her decision not to seek reelection and to run for the U.S. Senate, a bid that fell short in the March primary, kicked off a passionate competition to replace her. Porter narrowly beat back a challenge by Baugh in 2022. At press time, Baugh leads by .4% (1,200 votes).

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49th Congressional District The race between Democratic Rep. Mike Levin and his Republican challenger Matt Gunderson for California’s 49th Congressional District in San Diego and Orange counties remains too close to call. The 49th District was one of six tight congressional races in California that could help determine which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives. Last month, the Cook Political Report moved the district race from “likely Democratic” to “leaning Democratic,” a sign of the concerted effort by Republicans to flip blue seats. At press time, Levin leads by 2% (5,200 votes).

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45th Congressional District The competitive race between Republican Rep. Michelle Steel and Democratic challenger Derek Tran for an Orange County swing district remains too close to call. Steel, 69, and Tran, 44, went head-to-head in one of the nation’s tightest contests for the U.S. House of Representatives. At press time, Steel leads by 4% (10,200 votes).

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13th Congressional District Once again, Rep. John Duarte (R–Modesto) and former Asm. Adam Gray (D–Merced) are locked in a close battle for the 13th District. Duarte won the race two years ago by less than 600 votes and has a cushion of over 3,000 (2.8%) at press time. 

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22nd Congressional District Rep. David Valadao (R–Hanford) won his seat against former Asm. Rudy Salas (D–Bakersfield) two years ago by three points. Valadao has jumped out to a significant 10% (10,000) lead in the 22nd District, but incoming votes from Kern County could tighten the race in the coming weeks.

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9th Congressional District Initial returns prove that Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln could defeat Rep. Josh Harder (D–Tracy) despite Democrats holding an 11-point advantage in voter registration in the 9th District. At press time, Harder leads by 1.4% (2,000 votes).

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21st Congressional District Rep. Jim Costa (D–Fresno) has the advantage of being in a district that favors Democrats by nearly 14 points. However, challenger Michael Maher is only around 1,000 (.8%) votes behind Costa, seeking his 11th term in Congress. The last time Costa came close to losing was in 2014 when he bested Johnny Tacherra by 1.4 points. 

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8th Assembly District Former Congressman George Radanovich (R) and David Tangipa (R) are running in this open seat. Tangipa leads by 8,000 votes at press time (5%).

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32nd Assembly District In this interesting race, Congressman Vince Fong was re-elected to his former Assembly seat and won re-election to his house seat. Since he can’t hold both seats, a special election will be held in 2025.

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75^th Assembly District Former San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio, who toured the San Diego WECA facilities earlier this year, won big in his race for the California State Assembly. DeMaio’s 60%-40% win will send a bold, articulate, passionate defender of free enterprise to a building that could benefit from that knowledge.

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19^th Senate District State Senator Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh will defeat Councilmember Lisa Middleton, who voted to pass a PLA at the City of Palm Springs, as a springboard for higher office. It doesn’t appear to have worked, as Ochoa Bogh leads 53.3% to 46.7%, with a lead of over 16,000 votes. Senator Ochoa Bogh visited our WECA Training Facilities in Riverside last year.

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Orange County Supervisor Senator Janet Nguyen, a great supporter of the merit shop in the State Assembly, State Senate, and as a former County Supervisor, will return to the Board with WECA’s support; Nguyen cruised to a 63% to 36% victory to replace Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do, who resigned last month and pled guilty to accepting more than $550,000 in bribes to direct millions of dollars meant for COVID relief during the pandemic to a family-connected nonprofit.

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In Irvine, WECA-supported candidate John Park is leading in his race by only 91 votes! You might remember John Park’s visit to the OC Ironworkers HQ with Assemblyman Phillip Chen earlier this year. (Park refused to sign their PLA pledge.) But if that holds, we might pick up two seats and re-elect our one Irvine Councilman who voted against the PLA, Mike Carroll. So, Mike Carroll was re-elected to Irvine City Council, District 4. In District 3, WECA-supported candidate James Mai is going to win. That is a pickup for the merit shop. Because Democrat Farrah Khan did not run for re-election after losing her bid to move up to OC Supervisor and because Tammy Kim ran against Larry Agran for Mayor, we ended up retiring two Councilmembers who voted for the PLA. They replaced Farrah Khan and Tammy Kim, who voted for the PLA. Larry Agran also voted for the PLA, but still won to replace Farrah Khan as Mayor.

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In Costa Mesa, WECA supported candidate Jeff Pettis (who you might remember from his YouTube videos about the union donations behind the Council pushing for a PLA), leading in his race with only 287 votes! But if that holds, we might pick up a seat and defeat Democrat Councilman Jeff Harlan, who voted for the PLA in the city. So did Mayor John Stephens, but he looks like he will win against James Peters, who we supported. He has a 1200+ lead right now. And it looks like we will replace our one anti-PLA vote with another anti-PLA, pro-merit shop candidate, with Mike Buley replacing Don Harper, who chose not to run for re-election.

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Fresno County Board of Supervisors There will also be two new Fresno County Supervisors, with challengers defeating incumbents. On election night, Garry Bredefeld, current Fresno City Councilmember, defeated Supervisor Steve Brandau. Supervisor Sal Quintero lost his race to challenger and Fresno City Councilmember Luiz Chavez.

District 2

Steve Brandau (Inc.)                                         21,778              43.55%

Garry Bredefeld                                                27,964              55.92%

District 3

Sal Quintero (Inc.)                                            9,947                45.20%

Luis Chavez                                                   11,961               54.35%

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Kern County Board of Supervisors, District 2

Candidate                                                          Votes               Percent

Kelly Carden Jr.                                                2,670                10.13%

Dale Cisneros                                                    5,553                21.07%

Ben Dewell                                                       3,021                11.46%

Pete Graff                                                         2,025                7.68%

Bernita Jenkins                                                  4,375                16.60%

Chris Parlier                                                      8,715                33.06%

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Fresno City Council, District 6

Candidate                                                          Votes               Percent

Roger Bonakdar                                                10,343              49.13%

Nick Richardson                                               10,662               50.65%

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Other States

Votes are still being tabulated in Arizona and Utah, but for now, here is how some races look.

·        Utah Senator John Curtis leads in election results with 62% of the vote. Caroline Gleich is in second with 32%. Congressmembers Blake Moore (01) and Celeste Maloy (02) are in the lead, with about 60% of the votes coming in.

·        Utah Governor Spencer Cox is also in a great position to win re-election with about 55% of the vote, and the closest opponent is currently at 30%.

·        Arizona has a big Senate race between Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego. Gallego is currently in the lead with 50.1%, a 52,000-vote lead.

·        Proposition 140 in Arizona would have called for open primary elections, but that measure failed.

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City Attorney: Perhaps experience matters – or at least experience that gets you a good ballot title does. Heather Ferbert, a chief deputy city attorney, sailed past Assemblymember Brian Maienschein in the San Diego City Attorney race. Ferbert led Maienschein by around 12 points early Wednesday morning. Though the race divided councilmembers, Maienschein had the support of most labor unions, the mayor, and the county’s Democratic party.

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Some Cities Convinced Voters to Pay More Taxes Several cities appear to have passed tax increases, but San Diego’s sales tax increase, Measure E, remains too close to call. As of 1 a.m., the county had “yes” at 49 percent of the vote – just more than 7,900 votes back out of more than 346,000 counted so far. With each count update, the yes side gained ground. All of San Diego’s City Councilmembers supported the proposed tax increase. So far, San Diegans are rejecting a countywide measure to raise the sales tax by half a cent to pay for transportation projects. But as of 1 a.m., the vote was too close to call with 52 percent of voters casting ballots against Measure G, and 48 percent in favor – a difference of 37,388 out of nearly 900,000 votes counted. 

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Please watch for our next bulletin back in this space on Thursday, December 5th. We wish you all a joyful holiday.