City Council Meeting
5-22-01 Santa
Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER _____
(City
Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY
COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF SANTA MONICA ADDING
CHAPTER 4.65 TO THE SANTA
MONICA MUNICIPAL CREATING
MINIMUM WAGE REQUIREMENTS
APPLICABLE TO BUSINESSES IN
THE COASTAL ZONE AND
EXTENDED DOWNTOWN CORE WITH
GROSS RECEIPTS OVER
$3,000,000 AND TO CITY
SERVICE CONTRACTORS
WHEREAS, the public welfare requires that wages and benefits be
sufficient to ensure a decent and healthy life for workers and their families;
and
WHEREAS, many Santa Monica employers pay wages so low as to imperil the
general welfare; and
WHEREAS, many Santa Monica workers earn wages insufficient to support
themselves and their families; and
WHEREAS, many Santa Monica workers receive no health care benefits and
therefore cannot protect their own health and the health of their families; and
WHEREAS, many Santa Monica workers cannot participate in civic life or
pursue educational, cultural and recreational opportunities because they must
work such long hours to meet their households= most basic needs; and
WHEREAS, workers who do not receive adequate wages must rely upon
federal, state and local public assistance and social services funded by
taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, workers who do not receive health care benefits may be unable
to maintain their own health or the health of their children, may be forced to
utilize publicly- funded health and emergency care services, and may
unintentionally imperil the health of others; and
WHEREAS, workers who do not have sufficient income and time off work to
participate in the civic affairs and to
pursue educational, cultural and recreational opportunities may become
disconnected from their communities, their states and their nation and may
never escape poverty; and
WHEREAS, minimum wage laws promote the general welfare by ensuring that
workers can support and care for their families through their own efforts and
without governmental intervention; and
WHEREAS, creating decent job opportunities through minimum wage and
benefit laws is a better way to protect individuals and families than public
assistance because the availability of decent job opportunities fosters
independence, self-reliance and family unity; and
WHEREAS, laws mandating or encouraging the provision of health care
benefits to workers promote the general welfare by minimizing health risks to the general population and
reducing the cost of emergency and other health care to the taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, minimum wage and benefit laws also assure workers the means and
leisure to participate in civic life and educational opportunities and thereby
strengthen the fabric of our society; and
WHEREAS, minimum wage and benefit laws also benefit employers and the
economy as a whole by improving employee performance, reducing employee
turnover, lowering absenteeism, and
thereby improving productivity and the quality of the services provided by
employees; and
WHEREAS, in recognition of these realities, the federal government
mandates the payment of a minimum wage; and
WHEREAS, in recognition of the fact that circumstances, including the
cost of living, vary substantially through the United States, federal law
explicitly authorizes states and municipalities to set more stringent wage
standards than those established federally; and
WHEREAS, the State of California has exercised its power to set a
minimum wage which is higher than the minimum set by federal law in part
because the cost of living in California is higher than in most regions in this
country; and
WHEREAS, the State Legislature has also recognized that localities may
need to set more stringent wage standards than those set by state law and has
therefore specifically authorized the adoption of such standards in Labor Code
Section 1205; and
WHEREAS, the California Attorney General has likewise recognized in
Opinion Number 89-502 the power of local governments in California to set wage
requirements higher than those set by state law; and
WHEREAS, the federal minimum wage has declined steadily in real dollars
for two decades; and
WHEREAS, the California minimum wage has also declined in real dollars;
and
WHEREAS, the State minimum wage is inadequate to meet the needs of
workers in the Los Angeles region because the cost of living in the Los Angeles
region is much higher than in most parts of the state; and
WHEREAS, housing costs in the Los Angeles region are particularly high
relative to most areas of the State, and low income workers must therefore
spend a disproportionate percentage of their income to shelter themselves and
their families, and a disproportionate amount of their time traveling to and
from work; and
WHEREAS, the state minimum wage is not adequate to meet the needs of
workers in the Los Angeles region; and, as a result, the taxpayers of this
region are compelled to pay the cost of meeting workers needs; and
WHEREAS, a minimum wage standard which condemns a full-time worker=s family to abject poverty
is simply inadequate to achieve the long-recognized and salutary goals of
the minimum wage laws; and
WHEREAS, the inadequacy of the state minimum wage is particularly
obvious in Santa Monica where the cost of living is very high and where
thousands of workers labor at very low-paying jobs; and
WHEREAS, the highest concentration of low-income workers is in the
coastal zone and the extended downtown core of Santa Monica; and
WHEREAS, this same area is home to some of the City=s largest and most
profitable businesses, including luxury hotels, gourmet restaurants and large,
national retailers which can afford to pay their employees decent wages and can
pass the cost of paying increased wages to consumers; and
WHEREAS, most workers in this zone are heads of household who bear
primary responsibility for supporting their families; and
WHEREAS, eighty per cent of these workers have incomes inadequate to
meet their families= basic needs; and
WHEREAS, the vast majority of these workers have no private health
insurance; and
WHEREAS, guests staying in the hotels in this area may pay more than
$400.00 per night for a hotel room, while the workers changing their bedding
and serving their food cannot support their own families; and
WHEREAS, businesses in this portion of the City have reaped the benefits
of various City policies and investments; and
WHEREAS, the City has been active in improving this area through capital
investments, operating expenditures, the promotion and tourism and City
policies which restrict growth and limit competition among certain businesses;
and
WHEREAS, these investments, expenditures and policies have fostered huge
profits for some businesses in the area which employ large numbers of low-wage
workers; and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to adopt a local requirement in furtherance
of the purposes of the state minimum wage law and adequate to address the needs
of workers in this area of the City; and
WHEREAS, the City Council also wishes to ensure that no business shall
suffer economic hardship so severe as to render it nonviable as a result of
this Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the Council wishes to take all possible action to address this
problem and intends that the severance doctrine shall be liberally applied to
effectuate the policy served by this law,
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES HEREBY
ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 4.65 is hereby added to the Santa Monica Municipal
Code to read as follows:
CHAPTER 4.65
LIVING WAGE
Section 4.65.010.
Definitions.
Coastal Zone. That
approximately 1.5 square mile area bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean and
on the east by Lincoln Boulevard south of Pico Boulevard, and 4th
Street north of Pico Boulevard as far north as San Vicente Boulevard. Here, the border goes inland along the San
Vicente Boulevard centerline for approximately 2400' and then follows to the
north City border.
Extended Downtown Core. That area bounded by Ocean Avenue, the north side of Wilshire
Boulevard, the west side of Fifth Court, and the south side of Colorado
Boulevard.
Employee. Any person
who is not a manager, supervisor, or confidential employee, who is not required
to possess an occupational license and who is employed by an employer or is
employed by a contractor working for an employer and works at the employer=s place of business at
least half of his or her work time.
Employer. Any contractor working for the City of Santa Monica
on a service contract and any private person or private corporation doing business
at a location in the Coastal Zone or extended Downtown Core with gross receipts
of over $3 million per year for the previous two years at that location.
Health Benefits. A payment
of at least (an amount in the range of $1.50 - $2.50) per hour towards the
provision of health care benefits for employees and their dependents.
Section 4.65.020.
Minimum Compensation for Employees.
Employers shall pay employees a wage of no less than
the hourly rate established by this Chapter.
The initial hourly rate shall be (in the range of $8.00 to $10.69)) per
hour with health benefits, as defined in this Chapter, or (in the range of
$9.50 to $13.19)) per hour without health benefits. Such rates shall be adjusted annually each July 1st, beginning in
2002 by an amount corresponding to any change in the Consumer Price Index for
the All Urban Consumer=s published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics.
Section 4.65.030.
Exemption for Severe Economic Hardship.
An employer who contends that compliance with this
Chapter would constitute a severe economic hardship may apply to the City
Manager for a waiver applicable to all or part of the employers= work force. Criteria for determining hardship shall
include whether: (a) compliance with the requirements of this Chapter would
render the employer=s business nonviable; (b) the employer=s business depends for its
viability upon young people and other first-time workers who are employed on a
seasonal basis; and (c) whether granting a waiver would otherwise advance the
policies underlying this Chapter. The
City Manager shall promulgate an Administrative Instruction establishing
specific criteria applicable to and procedures for processing hardship
applications. Said Administrative
Instruction shall set forth information to be included on the hardship
application, procedures for filing and processing applications, and procedures
for administrative review by a City hearing examiner whose final decision shall
be subject to judicial review.
Section 4.65.040.
Prohibition Against Retaliation.
It shall be unlawful for any employer or employer=s agent or representative
to take any action against an employee in retaliation for the employee=s exercise of his or her
rights under this Chapter.
Section 4.65.050.
Remedies.
(a) Criminal Penalty. Any person who is
convicted of violating this Chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon
conviction shall be punished by a fine of not greater than five hundred dollars
or by imprisonment in the County Jail for not more than six months, or by both
such fine and imprisonment.
(b) Civil Action. Any person, including the
City, may enforce the provisions of this Chapter by means of a civil action for
injunctive and monetary relief. The burden of proof in such cases shall be
preponderance of the evidence. Any
person who violates or aids or incites another person to violate the provisions
of this Chapter is liable for each and every such offense for the actual
damages suffered by any aggrieved party or for statutory damages in the sum of
five hundred dollars, whichever is greater, and shall be liable for such
attorney's fees and costs as may be determined by the court in addition
thereto. The court may also award punitive damages to any plaintiff, including
the City, in a proper case as defined by Civil Code Section 3294. The burden of
proof for purposes of punitive damages shall be clear and convincing evidence.
(c) Administrative Complaint. Any employee claiming violation of this Chapter
may file an administrative complaint with the City Manager or his or her
designee who shall investigate the complaint and render a determination on
it. If the City Manager or Manager=s designee concludes that a
violation has occurred, he or she may issue orders to the employer appropriate
to effectuate the complaining employees= rights, including, but not limited to, back pay and
reinstatement. If the employer refuses
to comply with such orders, the Manager may revoke the employer=s business license. The Manager=s determination shall be appealable to a hearing
office who shall conduct an evidentiary hearing and issue a written decision
thereon. The hearing officer=s decision shall be
reviewable in court.
(d) Nonexclusive Remedies and Penalties. The remedies
provided in this Section are not exclusive, and nothing in this Chapter shall
preclude any person from seeking any other remedies, penalties or procedures
provided by law.
Section 4.65.060.
Supersession by Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Parties subject to this Chapter may by collective
bargaining agreement provide that such agreement shall supercede the
requirements of this Chapter.
Section 4.65.070.
Effective Date and Implementation.
The requirements of this Chapter shall be effective
as of January 1, 2002. The City Manager
may promulgate such regulations as are necessary to implement this Article.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the
Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the
provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no
further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the
provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section,
subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason
held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this Ordinance. The City
Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and
every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or
unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance would
be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign
and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be
published once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its
adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
____________________________
MARSHA JONES MOUTRIE
City Attorney