Simon Touches on the Gray Area of Workers’ Compensation
By Robert Warne - September 25, 2002While the spotlight was on Governor Gray Davis signing the paid family leave legislation, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Simon was in Long Beach addressing several hundred women. His message to them was that as governor he would work to reverse workers’ compensation increases and other labor regulations that are strangling business and economic growth.
Simon pointed out that the AB 749 legislation will only burden businesses and will ultimately fail employees.
“California's workers' compensation system is broken,” he explained to the group, according to the Los Angeles Times. “How else could you describe a system in which employers pay the highest premiums in the nation, and injured workers get among the worst benefits?”
Davis spokesman, Gabriel Sanchez challenged Simon’s allegations that the governor had created an anti-business climate in California that has pushed companies to insolvency and contributed to the state's unemployment. He told the Times that, “We're facing a national recession and, despite all that, California is still doing better than the national economy.”
Following his speech, Simon met with a group of business owners to discuss the impact of recent state-mandated expenses on their companies.
According to the Times there was a general consensus among the business owners that increases in workers’ compensation costs have forced them to lay off employees, threatened profitability and has led them to consider expansion outside of the state.
The excitement continues to mount as the workers’ compensation dialog among candidates gains momentum.
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