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8.A. - Page 5 of 73 <br />grocery store workers. In the Bay Area, staff understand that Daly City, Oakland, San Jose and San Leandro <br />have already received legal challenges. <br />COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT <br />City Councilmembers and staff have conducted outreach to the potentially impacted businesses by either <br />phone, email, or in-person site visits, about 20 locations total to seek feedback on the proposed ordinance. <br />The San Mateo County Labor Council has also shared the City's survey with local represented employees <br />who may be impacted by a local Hazard Pay Ordinance. <br />Community Survey <br />A community survey was also conducted over a two-week period, from March 23, 2021 to April 6, 2021. <br />Of 324 responses, 304 indicated the respondent lives or works in Redwood City. Of those, more than 200 <br />responses indicated support for hazard pay (67%) and 104 (33%) responses did not. Of the 20 responses <br />from individuals who neither live nor work in Redwood City, 18 indicated support for hazard pay. <br />Residents both for and against the proposal largely agreed on three points: <br />A hazard pay ordinance would have been more appropriate early in 2020 <br />Grocery and drug store workers are not the only essential workers that merit hazard pay <br />It is important to prioritize vaccinations, mask mandates, additional PPE, and other support for <br />essential workers in grocery and drug stores. <br />Among the 104 responses from Redwood City residents and workers indicating opposition to hazard pay, <br />the chief concern was that any hazard pay should have been offered earlier, while some indicated it is <br />now too close to the end of the pandemic for hazard pay to be useful. A small portion of respondents <br />indicated concern about increased grocery prices, that a hazard pay ordinance is outside the scope of local <br />government's role, and that they were worried about store closures or layoffs. Responses revealed three <br />misconceptions worth clarifying: <br />No City funds would be spent to fulfill the wage increases <br />While some grocery workers may have already received a $2.00-$5.00 per hour pandemic wage <br />increase, the proposed increase would be up to $5.00 per hour, not on top of any existing <br />increases <br />Not all grocery and drugstore employees are represented by unions who already negotiate <br />salaries on their behalf <br />Among the 200 responses from residents and workers in support of the proposal, several dozen <br />respondents indicated that the proposed hazard pay ordinance represents appropriate support or that <br />the workers deserve more, and many requested that back pay to compensate grocery and drugstore <br />workers for their work during the riskiest times in the pandemic be provided. Some indicated that even <br />at this late point in the pandemic hazard pay is a valuable intervention, while others in favor of hazard pay <br />also indicated concern for essential workers experiencing abuse from the public, like spitting, yelling, and <br />refusing to wear a mask. <br />Page 5 of 8 <br />imm 1 <br />City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org <br />364 <br />