Author Archives : The Left Hook

Beall’s Open Senate Seat Attracts Political Heavy Weights


Senator Jim Beall is termed out in 2020 and his soon-to-be vacant seat is attracting a number of political heavy weights. First on the list is Dave Cortese. Cortese, who is termed out of his Supervisorial seat in 2020, is no stranger to the political scene. He is a former San Jose Council Member, served for eight years as a…

Two Candidates Vie for Senate Seat Vacated by Bill Monning


There are two candidates vying for the open 17th Senate District seat. The position is currently held by Bill Monning who is terming out in 2020.  The front runner, John Laird, is a former Santa Cruz City Council Member, a former State Assembly Member and most recently served as the State Secretary for Natural Resources under Governor Jerry Brown.  His opponent,…

Policy Watch: Week of 2/19


County of Santa Clara Updates on negotiations for a development agreement between with Stanford University related to its General Use Permit The October 16, 2018 (Item No. 9) Board meeting, the Board of Supervisors considered a report arising from a Board referral at the September 25, 2018 (Item No. 15) meeting requesting information about proceeding with a process to negotiate…

Storm Prompts San Jose to Call Speedy Evacuation Orders


The City of San Jose has been quick to send out evacuation orders this storm, something it failed to do the last time the city was hit by a strong rainstorm. A couple of years ago, the City took a lax approach to evacuating its citizens, resulting in the loss of millions of dollars of personal property. This time, it…

Board of Supervisors Votes Unanimously to Increase Funding to Aid Wage Theft and Sexual Assault Victims


Today, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to double the funding of the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement – increasing the capacity of the current wage theft prevention program and protecting thousands of workers and women from wage theft, human trafficking, and sexual abuse. This vote, which provides $500,000 of funding to the Office of Labor Standards…

SCU faculty demand union vote at annual fundraising gala


Over 100 Santa Clara University faculty, students and community allies rallied outside of SCU’s fundraising gala on Saturday, Jan. 19 in support of a fair vote on unionization for non-tenure track faculty. The gala featured musician James Taylor, who performed to a sold-out crowd of the university’s most elite donors. While community members marched with signs calling for a vote…

Policy Watch: Week of 2/4


City of San Jose NEW MEMO + LETTER – Update on design concepts for Diridon Station redevelopment MEMO FROM MAYOR, JIMENEZ, PERALEZ, DAVIS & ESPARZA –  As leaders whose constituents live in districts through which the train will likely pass, these elected identify four key issues that they ask Partner Agencies to thoroughly address: 1. Having grade separations (i.e. rails…

San Jose Rules Committee to Vote on Whether to Update Wage Theft Prevention Ordinance


Tomorrow, the San Jose Rules Committee will vote on whether to update the City’s Wage Theft Prevention Ordinance. The ordinance, which was originally enacted in 2016, excluded one of the industries most impacted by wage theft: construction.  One in six California construction workers is a victim of wage theft. Since 2011, approximately 7,000 Bay Area construction workers at over 500…

Policy Watch: Week of 1/28


County of Santa Clara Adding $500,000 to new OLSE budget for community-based outreach & giving direction on workplan On December 4, 2018 (Item No. 22 and Item No. 31), the Board approved the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) wor kplan with an allocation of $500,000 for the Labor Standards Outreach and Education Initiative. The Board directed Administration to report…

Bloomberg: Google Urged the U.S. to Limit Protection For Activist Workers


While Google publicly supported employees who protested company policies, it quietly asked the government to narrow the right to organize over work email By Josh Eidelson, Hassan Kanu, and Mark Bergen January 24, 2019, 2:00 AM PST Google, whose employees have captured international attention in recent months through high-profile protests of workplace policies, has been quietly urging the U.S. government to narrow legal protection for…