San Francisco supervisors have unanimously approved a resolution that urges chain grocery stores to raise employee hourly wages by $5 amid the pandemic, reports SF Gate. The hazard pay would last as long as the city remains in the Purple, Red, or Orange levels of the state’s COVID-19 tiered system for counties.
Supervisor Shamann Walton authored the resolution and has stressed it is meant for large chains and not smaller mom and pop grocers. However, the California Grocers Association believes that raising wages could have harmful impacts.
“These extra pay mandates will not do anything to make grocery workers or customers any safer,” California Grocers Association president and CEO Ron Fong said in a statement. “Rather, there will be significant potential negative consequences and would likely result in higher costs for groceries that disproportionately hurts low-income families, seniors, and disadvantaged communities already struggling financially. These proposals could also harm grocery workers themselves if stores are forced to reduce jobs or hours for employees due to higher costs.”
