Grinberg: AB 1751: A Symptom of a Sick California

Tuesday, February 8, 2022 | 0

If you’re following the COVID news beyond the borders of California, you’re likely seeing a long list of countries (and states) that seem to be rolling back restrictions. The U.K. has already dropped almost all of its COVID-19 restrictions, as has Ireland, as has Denmark, as have many states and counties.

Gregory Grinberg

If that’s the global trend, why do we need to extend the sunset period for Senate Bill 1159 and the presumption laws? Why do we need to continue to burden employers with tallying total employees and for periods related to every COVID exposure? Why do we continue to make employers such as fire departments, police departments and hospitals the general insurers against something to which we are all exposed?

That is the effect of proposed Assembly Bill 1751, introduced by Assemblyman Tom Daly, D-Anaheim, which would extend SB 1159 from sunsetting on Jan. 1, 2023, to Jan. 1, 2025.

California’s employers’ have been through the wringer already. The Golden State already makes it hard enough to keep the lights on, and COVID-19 and the related lockdowns were brutal, keeping customers and clients away. 

With SB 1159, California burdened employers further with a tremendous administrative undertaking in keeping track of numbers for outbreak purposes, reducing investigation periods from 90 days to 30 or 45, depending on the circumstances, and, in light of the See’s Candies case, likely setting employers up for liability in the torts arena as well.

Sacramento seems intent to look out at a flock of geese laying golden eggs and get excited for the prospect to cook them. After the tremendous toll California’s employers have borne for the last two years, shouldn’t Sacramento be focused on helping California’s employers recover from COVID-19? 

I wish AB 1751 a swift demise, and you a good week.

Gregory Grinberg is managing partner of Gale, Sutow & Associates’ S.F. Bay South office and a certified specialist in workers’ compensation law. This post is reprinted with permission from Grinberg’s WCDefenseCA blog.