Posts tagged Senate Bill S1172
California proposes paying unemployment benefits to striking workers
August 24, 2023 // One of the main sponsors of the bill, state Sen. Anthony Portantino, said, “I think there’s more of a recognition that hardworking men and women need to have a seat at the table to discuss economic expansion.” He added, “It is embarrassing for California that we don’t have unemployment insurance for striking workers.” The deadline for California lawmakers to introduce new bills was in February, but state legislators can still rework unrelated bills, in a move called “gut-and-amend,” to circumvent the missed deadline and include the new language. The last-minute legislative push is backed by the California Labor Federation, which is led by former state Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez. When Gonzalez tried to pass a similar bill in 2019, it eventually passed both chambers but was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Massachusetts lawmakers propose paying striking workers
July 21, 2023 // Massachusetts State Sen. Paul Feeney recently proposed Senate Bill S1172, which would funnel unemployment benefits to striking workers after thirty days. The bill’s text states that a striking worker “shall be entitled to recover any benefits lost as a result” of going on strike for over 30 days due to a “labor dispute.” It also says that the state of Massachusetts cannot “deny benefits to an otherwise eligible individual who becomes involuntarily unemployed” and “shall receive benefits for the period of his unemployment but in no event beyond the date of the commencement of a strike.” The bill added that “no waiting period or disqualification … shall apply if the labor dispute is caused by the failure or refusal of the employer” to comply with a collective bargaining agreement or contract. Meaning, if the employer caused the strike, the striking worker receives unemployment benefits without delay and without going through a waiting period. S1172’s sponsors are Sen. Paul Feeney and Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa. Feeney proposed a similar bill last year, but it did not make it out of the state Senate’s Ways and Means Committee.