Garcetti pushes law protecting displaced workers from being replaced by cheaper labor

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti said Tuesday evening that he intends to sign a worker retention ordinance that could protect people who have been laid off or furloughed by requiring companies to rehire them based on seniority.

“Those folks with decades of experience and seniority, who support families and communities, can’t be the victims when we get back to work,” Garcetti said. “For so many thousands of displaced workers in these industries, this could mean at least a little bit of certainty at this moment of so much insecurity and a whole lot of fairness as we navigate this crisis.”

He said the City Council is taking up the ordinance Wednesday.

At his daily press conference, the mayor said the idea was to prevent senior workers being replaced by newer, cheaper ones when the economy comes back.

Los Angeles County officials on Tuesday confirmed 1,400 more coronavirus cases, 880 of which were included in a backlog from laboratories that had not previously reported results through the county’s electronic system.

The county also reported 46 new coronavirus-linked deaths, bringing the toll to at least 663.

More than 89,000 residents have been tested for COVID-19, and at least 15,140 have tested positive, Public Health Department director Barbara Ferrer said.