Bay Area

Large Grocery Stores End Hazard Pay in Oakland, Berkeley

Immediately after Oakland and Berkeley reached the yellow tier of COVID-19 spread, as state restrictions like capacity limits lifted, and as the Delta variant continued to spread, positive cases of the virus began to trend upward. A chart showing data collected by Alameda County shows that when the county entered the yellow tier on June 8, the total cases from the previous 14 days was 455. Toward the end of July, this 14-day total passed 4,000 cases on three consecutive days, which was about a ninefold increase.

Published

3 years ago

August 6, 2021

Isabelle Price

Trader Joe's is one of the large grocery store chains in Oakland and Berkeley that have recently stopped paying their workers COVID-19 related hazard pay. Photo is of the store in the Lakeshore neighborhood of Oakland on August 3 and was taken by Zack Haber.

Workers in four different chain grocery stores in Oakland, Berkeley and Emeryville told The Oakland Post that they are not receiving hazard pay related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While Oakland and Berkeley city councils each unanimously passed ordinances last February that required large grocery stores to pay workers an additional $5 per hour due to COVID-19 hazards, both ordinances stated that once the cities reached the yellow tier — that indicating minimal COVID-19 spread — this requirement would end.

Workers in Whole Foods, Grocery Outlet and Trader Joe’s based in either Oakland or Berkeley reported that they received their last hazard paychecks in early July, about a month after these cities reached the yellow tier on June 8.

The Oakland Post contacted Oakland City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas, who wrote The Grocery Store Worker Hazard Pay Emergency Ordinance, to ask about hazard pay ending. Bas’s chief of staff, Miya Saika Chen responded by acknowledging that since the ordinance “was tied to state guidelines determining safe reopening,” and Oakland had reached the yellow tier, the ordinance no longer applies.

In response to questions about hazard pay ending as COVID-19 cases increased, Chen emphasized the impact of vaccination, as vaccines have been effective in preventing serious health effects related to the virus.

“Our top priority must be to ensure everyone has accurate information about the vaccines and safe and equitable access to the vaccines in order to prevent another wave of infections,” she said.

Neither Bas nor any members her staff responded when asked if there was anything council could do or is planning to do to reinstate grocery store hazard pay. The Oakland Post posed the same question to Berkeley City Councilmember Terry Taplin, who wrote Berkeley’s hazard pay ordinance. He responded by saying that to reinstate grocery store hazard pay, Berkeley’s City Council would have to pass a new ordinance.

“The city is currently evaluating several options to respond to the Delta variant,” Taplin said. “I will have to consult with the city team and legal to discuss what can be done around new hazard pay.”

In Oakland and Berkeley, new hazard pay ordinances cannot be passed this month through City Council actions, as council meetings in both cities are on hold through August. But both Oakland and Berkeley City Councils could revisit the issue in September when meetings start up again. The grocery store workers who The Oakland Post spoke to felt they deserved hazard pay due to their hard work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“[The hazard pay] was so helpful,” said a Whole Foods worker in Berkeley. “It’s so expensive to live here and I can barely make it. I was able to put a little money away and not penny-pinch when I was getting it.”

Like all workers interviewed for this article, this worker feared retaliation from their employers for speaking to the press about their pay, and asked not to be named.

Furthermore, with temperature checks suspended, the Berkeley Whole Foods worker said they did not feel safe at work. They also claimed that in May there was an outbreak of the virus in the prepared foods section of their store. Although The Oakland Post contacted Whole Foods to ask about hazard pay, temperature checks, and the alleged COVID-19 outbreak, their media team has not responded.

The City of Emeryville, which borders both Oakland and Berkeley, has never required any grocery stores to offer its employees COVID-19 hazard pay. A worker at a Pak ’N Save in Emeryville, who has been on the job for about a year, said they were being paid Emeryville’s minimum wage, which is currently $17.13, and has never received any hazard pay. They said low pay has hit some of their co-workers with families especially hard. Children sometimes wait in the Pak ’N Save break room during shifts as the pay rates make it impossible for some grocery store workers to afford childcare.

“They are paying us the lowest they are literally allowed to pay us,” the Pak ’N Save worker said. “A lot of people are sick of it. A lot of people are quitting.”

Wendy Gutshall, a spokesperson for Safeway, the company that owns and operates Pak ’N Save, confirmed that the Emeryville store has not been paying hazard pay and that Safeway stores in Oakland and Berkeley stopped paying the $5 hazard pay after those cities reached the yellow tier. Gutshall said Safeway and Pak ’N Save paid workers an extra $2 an hour in hazard pay from March through June 13 of 2020 and gave a bonus to their frontline workers last December.

Although they have not currently been receiving hazard pay, workers at Pak ’N Save in Emeryville have faced exposure to COVID-19. Emails this Pak ’N Save worker shared with The Oakland Post from a Regional Human Resources Manager indicate that between July 21 and July 28, workers had been exposed to COVID-19 three separate times in the store.

This same worker shared a photo of a letter the store displayed in its break room indicating that one of their co-workers recently filed a complaint with State of California’s Dept. of Industrial Relations accusing the store of making them work for several days after they reported experiencing COVID-19 symptoms due to the store being short staffed.

When asked about the complaint, Gutshall said she could not speak to it directly, stating “For privacy reasons, we cannot provide specifics regarding a [worker’s] situation.” She said workers experiencing COVID-19 symptoms are instructed to go home, that the company is in close contact with such workers to investigate their contacts with other workers and ensure they receive appropriate medical care, and that such workers can access 80 hours of quarantine pay.

According to Gutshall, workers are required to check their temperature when reporting for work at Pak ’N Save and Safeway. The Pak ’N Save worker The Oakland Post interviewed said such temperature checks are optional at the store where they worked.

Both the Pak ’N Save worker and the Whole Foods worker that The Oakland Post interviewed said that as the pandemic has dragged on, increasing numbers of their co-workers have quit, which has caused their workload to intensify and increase.

“Everyone has to do a little bit of everything,” the Pak ’N Save worker said. “We don’t have enough checkers or enough people who walk around the store to help customers and clean up. But [Pak ‘’N Save] is not even willing to increase wages to meet the need for labor.”

“The work is just getting more and more stressful,” said the Whole Foods worker. “We’re running on a skeleton crew. And now we’re back to regular pay.”

Isabelle Price

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Activism

Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

Published

22 hours ago

December 20, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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City of Oakland Celebrates Reopening of Main Library

“Libraries are such critical facilities for all Oaklanders, whether it’s children coming to story-time, adults reading the newspapers or borrowing the latest novels, and people engaging with a range of services and programs that the library hosts,” said Council President and District 2 Councilmember Nikki Fortunato Bas. “Such library services and programs are only possible when the facility’s electricity, heating, roof, and lighting are fixed and running efficiently. I’m proud to join this re-opening of our Main Public Library.”

Published

3 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Left to Right- Jamie Turbak, Director of Library Services, LaTonda Simmons, Assistant City Administrator, Nikki Bas, President Oakland City Council, Shen Thao, Mayor of Oakland, Carroll Fife, Oakland City Councilmember District 3, Harold Duffey, Assistant City Administrator, Sean Maher, Projects Coordinator. Photo by Kevin Hicks.

The branch had been closed since May for critical infrastructure upgrades

Special to the Post

The City of Oakland leadership and community partners gathered to celebrate the reopening of the Main Library after completion of critical infrastructure upgrades to enhance the library’s facilities and provide a better experience for patrons.

Renovations include new roof installation, skylight repair, critical electrical system upgrades, new boiler control system installation, auditorium heating and cooling system installation, and improvements to lighting, flooring and ceilings throughout the building.

“This is truly something to celebrate, the reopening of our wonderful Main Library! I congratulate the staff and our partners for this important project to make the Main Library a more comfortable place for everyone for years to come, said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. “Thank you to Oakland voters and the California State Library for making these crucial improvements possible.”

“Public libraries are a wonderful resource for our residents, offering a safe space for learning and being,” said District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife. “It is critical to improve and modernize our libraries so more members of our community can utilize and enjoy them. I’m excited that the necessary renovations to the Main Library have been completed successfully and thank everyone involved, particularly the City team, who helped secured the necessary grant funds for this work.”

“I am proud of the City staff and project partners who kept this important project on schedule and under budget,” said Assistant City Administrator G. Harold Duffey. “The library is an incredibly important resource for our community members, and this project is an investment into the library’s future.”

“December 2nd was a momentous occasion for Oakland Public Library as we proudly reopened the doors of the Main Library following extensive infrastructure repairs,” said Director of Library Services Jamie Turbak. “Closing the Main Library for six months was no easy decision, as it serves as the central hub for our library system and is truly the heart of Oakland. Yet, this renovation was essential, representing more than just physical upgrades—it reflects our ongoing commitment to creating a safe, welcoming space for everyone.”

The City Administrator Jestin Johnson also attended the press conference and signalled his support for the completion of the record-setting completion of the renovations. Gay Plair Cobb, a newly appointed Library Commissioner said the Library represents the soul and brains of our community.

The Oakland Public Library secured funding for these crititcal repairs through a variety of sources. The California State Library’s Building Forward Library Facilities Improvement Program awarded the Main Branch $4.2 million. To comply with the grant terms, the City of Oakland provided matching funds through Measures KK, as approved by the Oakland City Council in October 2023.

The Main Library will host an Open House to celebrate the reopening on February 22, 2025, 10 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

About the Oakland Public Library

The Oakland Public Library is a part of the City of Oakland in California and has been in existence since 1878. Locations include 16 neighborhood branches, a Main Library, a Second Start Adult Literacy Program, the Oakland Tool Lending Library, and the African American Museum and Library at Oakland (AAMLO). The Oakland Public Library empowers all people to explore, connect, and grow. Oaklandlibrary.org

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Activism

A Student-Run Group Provides Critical Support Services to Underserved Residents

Those visiting The Suitcase Clinic can get legal advice, sign up for food assistance, receive housing resources, get medical help, or enjoy a hot, fresh meal. They can also get haircuts and foot washes from the student volunteers. Nilo Golchini, executive director of the clinic, said one of the goals for most of the students working there is helping bridge the gap of trust that exists between many unhoused people and the healthcare and social welfare systems.

Published

3 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

UC Berkeley Law Students help a clinic visitor with legal advice at their Tuesday night services. The Clinic offers a variety of resources, including medical, to those in the community who have little access to these services. Photo by Magaly Muñoz

Part One

By Magaly Muñoz

Every Tuesday evening, the dining hall of First Presbyterian Church fills up with dozens of people eating, laughing and moving from table to table, receiving much-needed services from UC Berkeley students – just a few blocks away from the university’s campus.

Individuals seeking support services can be found in this multi-stationed room on the south end of the church talking to law students, student case managers, or receiving medical attention in a corner by healthcare professionals.

This weekly event is hosted by Cal students through a volunteer-run program called The Suitcase Clinic.

The clinic, founded in 1989, was intended to offer free resources to underserved communities in Berkeley and surrounding cities. The majority of the clinic’s clientele are unhoused or low-income people looking for extra support.

Those visiting the clinic can get legal advice, sign up for food assistance, receive housing resources, get medical help, or enjoy a hot, fresh meal. They can also get haircuts and foot washes from the student volunteers.

Nilo Golchini, executive director of the clinic, said one of the goals for most of the students working there is helping bridge the gap of trust that exists between many unhoused people and the healthcare and social welfare systems.

During their tenure in the program, many of the students say they become strong advocates for homelessness rights.

Visitors of the Suitcase Clinic can receive haircuts and foot washing by student volunteers every Tuesday evening. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

“We’re also standing in solidarity with them. So, it’s not saying, ‘I’m going to help you, but I’m also going to stand with you,’” Golchini said.

Student volunteers get extensive training prior to working directly with clients. Those interested have to take a semester-long class to become versed in areas such as outreach, intersectionality, how to interact with unhoused people, how to sign people up for social services. and more.

Volunteers then get to pick from three different clinics: General, Women’s, or Youth and LGBTQ+.

The General Clinic is the most popular among visiting residents, while Women’s and Youth/LQBTQ+ have more specialized services for attendees.

The Women’s Clinic has many of the similar services to General, but also includes nail painting, childcare, and massages.

The Youth and LGBTQ+ Clinic offers a safe space for young people navigating living on the streets, with services that include housing referrals, wellness and recreation classes and employment resources.

Golchini explained that it’s important for them to keep these clinics separate because the different demographics experience poverty and homelessness differently than those who visit the General Clinic.

Suitcase Clinic student workers posing for a photo with a frequent clinic attendee. The Clinic is open to Berkeley unhoused and low-income residents who need medical or legal service, or a hot meal. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

“We’re able to provide spaces where people can come in and feel safe and not feel like they’re constantly worried that something’s going to happen to them,” she said.

An outreach team also visits encampments every other Saturday in the Berkeley area to provide hygiene kits and encourage people to visit the in-person clinic, if possible.

However, Golchini said engagement has been low for some time now due to a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that allows cities to ban and cite people for sleeping on the streets.

She said a lot of their clientele got displaced to other cities over time, making it difficult to stay in contact with the services the Clinic was providing for them.

But that hasn’t slowed down the students at the Clinic, if anything, it has pushed them to do more for the community they serve.