A bill to raise the pay of front-line workers in essential industries has instead put more employees out of work and made Food shopping more inconvenient for consumers.
CBS-TV reports that Kroger, the parent company of retailers Ralphs and Food4 Less, announced on April 1 that it will close the Ralphs store at 3380 N. Los Coyotes Diagonal and the Food4 Less store at 2185 E. South St. on April 17 in response to the Long Beach City Council’s approval of a $4-an-hour wage increase for retail employees. South St., and the Food4 Less retail store on 2185 E. South St.
The Long Beach City Council passed an ordinance last month requiring retailers with at least 300 employees nationwide to provide their laborers with an additional four dollars per hour in hazard pay for at least the next 120 days as an allowance for the risk of working during the New Crest Pneumonia (CCLV) outbreak.
The company said in a press release, “As a result of this City of Long Beach ordinance, which requires a pay increase for retail workers, we have had to make the difficult decision to permanently close our struggling retail stores in Long Beach. This misguided action by the Long Beach City Council goes beyond the traditional bargaining process, but does not apply to the entirety of retail labor.
The Los Angeles City Council is currently considering a similar bill that would provide retail workers with an additional $5 per hour stipend.
Last March and April, as the Epidemic spread, several major retailers, including Kroger, Walmart, Target and Albertsons, offered employees a one-Time incentive or a two-dollar-per-hour pay increase.
Kroger1 claimed that the company has spent $1.3 billion since the outbreak began, “rewarding employees and implementing dozens of safety measures.
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