PBA member Joseph Bisazza, owner of the Joseph Cozza Salon, alerted PBA to two legislative actions that will have a major financial impact on San Francisco salons. First, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors recently passed legislation that will require all businesses in the city to provide health insurance to any employee who lives in San Francisco starting July 1, 2007.
The new law requires businesses to provide health insurance to each employee through a company-sponsored plan with a minimum contribution of approximately $180.00 per employee/per month. If a company does not have a company sponsored health insurance plan, they will be required to contribute to a city-sponsored plan that will provide health benefits to their employees. The cost is approximately $360.00 per month/per employee.
While this may be a significant cost increase to San Francisco businesses next year, more serious news is on the way. This November, voters approved a proposition that will require all San Francisco businesses to provide paid sick-leave to all employees. This requires most businesses to pay for up to nine days of sick leave per year/per employee, a very onerous proposition for businesses that have commission-based employees. If a commission-based employee takes a sick day, the business may be required to pay that employee their full compensation even though they did not work.
Many salons already offer unpaid sick leave to non-hourly based employees. They do so because they factor unpaid days into the commission rates paid to stylists. However, now the employer would be foregoing the revenue, as the employee is unable to work, but will be forced to pay them as if they were working at the commission rate established before this law was enacted. Any business that employs commission-based employees, such as salons and car dealerships, is affected.
PBA is assisting Mr. Bizazza in his effort to create a coalition of salons interested in fighting for their financial success. This can be done by educating the lawmakers crafting the final legal language of the approved proposition before it takes affect and by informing them of the challenges inherent in this type of legislation.
PBA is also monitoring activity on Capitol Hill and in state legislatures that could expand this type of legislation beyond San Francisco. For example, Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) is proposing similar mandatory sick leave legislation in Congress, which would require companies of 15 or more employees to provide seven paid sick days annually for full-time workers. If you're interested in staying on top of these issues, please consider joining PBA's Grass Roots Network. You'll be kept up-to-date on issues that affect our industry and will be asked to call, email or fax your political representatives when you receive a PBA Action Alert! To sign up for the program, visit www.probeauty.org/advocacy/.
Have a government affairs issue that concerns you? Contact Sam Leyvas, PBA's Government Affairs Director, directly at sam@probeauty.org or 800-468-2274 x3437.