Irvine has become the first city in Orange County to adopt an ordinance that will require retail employers to pay temporary hazard pay, or “hero pay,” for 120 days, to employees working the frontlines in grocery and drug store settings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Irvine’s emergency ordinance, introduced to the council via memo on Feb. 2 by Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan, focused on the difficult situation many grocery store employees are enduring across the nation, including in Irvine.

The ordinance comes at a time when many workers have voiced frustration over hazardous workplace situations, citing the expectation to deal with unpredictable customers, many who refuse COVID-19 guidelines – all while being labeled “essential” – without any form of hazard pay. 

In a 3-2 vote on Tuesday, Feb. 9, the Irvine City Council voted to adopt an emergency hero pay ordinance, which will temporarily increase the hourly rate of local essential employees working the frontlines in Irvine grocery and drug stores by $4.

With the vote, all grocery stores, or pharmaceutical chains with more than 20 employees, that have more than 500 employees and exceed 15,000 square feet in size, will be subject to the hazard pay ordinance.

Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan, Vice Mayor Tammy Kim and City Council member Larry Agran voted to adopt the hero pay ordinance. Council members Anthony Kuo and Mike Carroll voted no. Both Kuo and Carroll expressed uncertainty surrounding the legality of an ordinance of this nature.

Carroll explained that while he supported the kind-hearted nature of the council to provide assistance, he said adopting the ordinance could invite unwanted legal drama.

“I see no path by which we could carry this resolution and provide these benefits – or mandate these benefits – and not end up being a part of a similar lawsuit and a costly one at that,” Carroll said. “I do salute the mayor and the council members that are seeking a path by which to help these people, but from my perspective we don’t have a payroll problem as much as a vaccine problem.“

Currently, there are three cities in Orange County that have considered implementing hero pay. Both Santa Ana and Costa Mesa support the idea.

However, it was reported that Kroger, the parent company of Ralphs, will close a store in Long Beach in direct response to Long Beach’s hero pay ordinance. The California Grower’s Association also filed a lawsuit against the city of Long Beach, although it is unclear where the suit stands.

In a Tweet on Feb. 1, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said Long Beach would continue to battle for hero pay for the essential workers in his city.

“We go to court this month and we will defend our workers vigorously,” Garcia wrote in a Tweet.

On Tuesday, Feb. 9, several grocery store workers called into the Irvine City Council meeting to express their support for the emergency ordinance. As essential workers, many said they face a greater risk of exposing themselves and their families to COVID-19 – without any extra financial incentives.

One caller, who identified herself as Casey Chambers, who works as a cashier at the Alberton’s next to Hoag Memorial and Kaiser Permanente in Irvine, said her store gets high foot traffic due to the close proximity to the hospitals.

“When I walk in I have to go through temperature checks, sanitize and do my PPE in accordance to the mandates from my employer – this is a hazardous job. We don’t know who could possibly be carrying the virus, and I’m interacting with them daily,” she said to the council via phone. “As an essential worker, my job is to help the community here in Irvine. We’re also proud to serve the thousands of hospital workers who come in because of the close proximity, but we’re here at risk while grocery and drug store employers are making record-breaking profits in a pandemic.”

Jose Ortiz, a 29-year employee and meat manager at the Albertsons off Jeffery Ave. in Irvine, said he works in fear, as several of his workers have gotten ill, leaving him no choice but to work the frontlines.

“For almost a year now, we’ve been working these demanding jobs, exposed and under very stressful conditions as more and more of my co-workers get sick ­– eight of my co-workers were out sick at one time,” Ortiz said. “My son and daughter also work at grocery stores in Irvine, and I worry about them and if either of us will be next.”

Linda Martinez, a representative of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 324 Labor Union, a Buena Park-based labor union, which represents grocery store workers in Irvine, also spoke during Tuesday’s meeting. 

Martinez explained that UFCW Local 324 members in Irvine are getting sick in high numbers.

“More than 10 percent of our Irvine members have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Workers are calling for hazard pay. We have delivered to the City Council a worker petition with  almost 700 of our members urging you to move forward with this ordinance.”

City Council member Larry Agran expressed his support for the emergency ordinance, thanking Mayor Khan via Zoom. Agran added that corporate pharmaceutical chains and large grocery store chains have done well financially during the pandemic, and have not offered incentives to their workers, despite complaints over unfair working conditions from those manning the front lines of retail.

“I think it’s important that a city like Irvine – that we take the lead,” Agran said. “We have so many people out there, who are really at risk, who are suffering, who are doing the hard work to help pull us through from beginning to end.”

In a Facebook post after the vote, Khan provided an update and offered her appreciation for the grocery store employees that called into Tuesday’s meeting to share their thoughts.

“Tonight, the Hero Pay for grocery and drug retail workers ordinance which I introduced passed the Irvine City Council by a 3-2 vote. In the last year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, our community has relied heavily on frontline grocery and drug retail workers for our basic needs, whilst they have faced unexpected hazardous workplace conditions, without the privilege to work from home or practice social distancing. As Irvine perseveres during this time of uncertainty and begins heading down the path of economic recovery and vaccination, I’m proud to stand with our working families. I’d also like to thank the numerous grocery store workers who called in and shared their powerful testimonies with the Irvine City Council tonight.”

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