(a)On August 14, 2019, the Governor signed Executive Order No. N-17-19 establishing the Future of Work Commission tasked with studying, among other matters, “the potential jobs of the future and opportunities to shape those jobs for the improvement of life for all of California,” “policies and practices that will help California’s businesses, workers, and communities thrive economically, while responding to rapid changes in technology and workplace structures and practices,” “policies and practices that will close the employment and wage gap for Californians,” “strategies for engaging employers in the creation of good, high-wage jobs of the future,” and “workforce development, training, education, and apprenticeship programs for the jobs of the future.”
(b)In March 2021, the Future of Work Commission issued its report, “A New Social Compact for Work and Workers,” recommending that, among other actions, California help (1) ensure the creation of sufficient numbers of jobs for everyone who wants to work, including by extending financial and technical assistance to mission-oriented businesses, (2) eliminate working poverty, including by creating supports for workers to organize in unions and worker associations as well as supporting “high-road” employment, (3) create a 21st-century worker benefits model and safety net, including by developing a portable benefits platform and encouraging apprenticeship and other skill-building programs, (4) raise the standard and share of quality jobs, including by creating a California Job Quality Incubator to support the increase of high-quality jobs, and (5) futureproof California with jobs and skills to prepare for technology, climate, and other shocks, including by providing incentives to the private sector to invest in worker training.
(c)The Legislature finds and declares that a California-focused federated worker cooperative system may advance these objectives by encouraging the expansion of democratically run high-road cooperative businesses that promote equitable economic development, reduce inequality, and increase access to living-wage jobs. Worker cooperatives have been shown to convey wealthbuilding and other significant benefits to workers, including autonomy from larger economic forces, more resiliency during economic downturns, lower workforce turnover, greater voice in health, safety, and other workplace issues, and more equitable pay. The Legislature wishes to study how a federated worker cooperative system could advance the goals of the Future of Work Commission, particularly as they apply to historically underresourced communities.