Sacramento, California (MJP) —
Under a proposed California law, the self-checkout experience at your local grocery store might change depending on what you’re purchasing, whether it’s eggs, laundry detergent, or anything else.
Self-checkout lanes would be outlawed in the state’s supermarket and convenience stores under Senate Bill 1446 unless the establishments meet specific labor standards.
Among these regulations is the need that no one employee be responsible for supervising more than two self-checkout lanes, and another is that retailers must inform customers of any technological changes that may affect their working conditions.
The bill also prohibits the purchase of skincare products that are enclosed in a case or gadgets that are protected from theft by wrapping them in an anti-theft tag, among other measures that limit the number of items consumers can purchase at self-checkout stations.
Democratic State Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas, who authored the bill, stated that its goals include the prevention of retail theft and the safety of employees.
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“We’ve focused a lot on retail theft and certainly given all the crime bills that have passed, communities like mine — South Central LA — have a lot at stake here,” Smallwood-Cuevas added. “If our communities are going to have to take accountability for retail theft, we think the retailers and the grocers should be doing the same.”
However, grocery store owners insist the bill has nothing to do with shoplifting.
One thing is certain: just because something is called a duck doesn’t mean it is one, according to Daniel Conway, VP of government affairs for the California Grocers Association.
Conway pointed out that neither law enforcement nor Governor Newsom’s bipartisan legislative leadership supported the measure, and that it was also not included in that package.
