The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce joins forces with California Chamber of Commerce and other organizations to respectfully OPPOSE AB 2374 (Haney). AB 2374 transforms the Displaced Janitor Opportunity Act into a joint liability statute under which any size company in California becomes liable for the failure of a contractor to comply with the Act and is now responsible for new notice and scheduling obligations for workers who are not its employees. The Act already provides robust, job retention protections for janitorial workers and there is no need to now expand liability and unnecessary obligations to clients. Further, AB 2374 would set a troubling precedent by binding an employer to a collective bargaining agreement that its new employee was previously under even though that employer had no role whatsoever in the bargaining process.

AB 2374 Holds Companies of Any Size Liable for Another Employer’s Actions

Any size company in California that contracts out for janitorial services would be liable for the failure of a contractor or successor contractor to comply with Labor Code Section 1061. Specifically, AB 2374 provides that the “awarding authority”1 can now be sued where a janitorial employee has not been offered employment by the successor contractor or has been discharged by one of the contractors. Not only can the awarding authority be sued by the employee, but AB 2374 also gives unions standing to sue them in civil court. This means that a company that did not contribute to the violations of Section 1061 and has no control over the hiring or firing decisions of the contractors is liable for back pay, benefits, and any applicable penalties under the Labor Code, including PAGA penalties.

AB 2374 completely ignores this long-standing analysis and imposes liability regardless of any control on the part of the awarding authority or opportunity to prevent the violation. This statutorily mandated expansion of liability is unreasonable and unnecessary. 

Read full letter of opposition here.