After months of uproar, harsh criticisms and biting commentary from advocates representing various industries, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2257 into law on Sept. 4. The legislation is an AB 5 amendment bill, and it will go into effect immediately.
Shortly after members of the California legislature took a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds at the California Capitol to protest racism and the death of George Floyd, Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) took the opportunity to call out some of her Latino colleagues.
“I have to be honest, I’m disappointed with our Latino caucus,” Gonzalez said at the event that Assemblymember Syndey Kamlager (D-Los Angeles), a member the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), organized.
Last week, Gov. Newsom signed AB 5, the “Employee Misclassification Bill,” into law. The legislation changes the classification of more than one million jobs in California from “contractor” to “employee.”
On Monday, July 8, Agbasi joined other members of the “I’m Independent Coalition” for a press conference at the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. At the event, a panel of advocates, community leaders and drivers called on lawmakers to fix the California Supreme Court’s Dynamex decision and amend AB 5, a bill the full Senate is expected to hear and vote on in September. Nearly 500 on-demand delivery drivers from across the state also rallied at the State Capitol July16 asking state legislators to fix the pending bill and protect their flexibility.