Antonio Villaraigosa: “California Must Solve Problems to Build Again, But Forcing Down Wages for Skilled and Trained Construction…Is No Solution”

LOS ANGELES — Antonio Villaraigosa, former Speaker of the California Assembly and 41st Mayor of Los Angeles, released the following statement about his opposition to AB 130, a proposal that sought to create a new minimum wage scale for construction workers that would have effectively undermined California’s prevailing wage scale and lowered wages for workers.

“California must solve problems to build again, but forcing down wages for skilled and trained construction workers below the minimum wage standards for entry-level fast-food workers is no solution.

“I authored the law protecting prevailing wages in California and helped lead the fight against the effort to slash wages for construction workers when I served as Assembly Speaker. I would never imagine that years later, California would attempt to undermine our progress with such an overt attack against prevailing wages. When I read about the effort to roll-back prevailing wages, I immediately spoke out and called for the rejection of AB 130. This flawed bill would have established a terrible precedent of lowering wages for construction workers, with wages for skilled and trained construction workers set below the minimum wage requirements for fast-food workers that were recently enacted by the Legislature.

“We have enough problems to solve in California, that’s why we must stand together to oppose bad policy ideas that will make problems in our state even worse. California needs to build again – new housing, transmission lines, water storage, and infrastructure. As Governor, I will work to make the crane the official bird of California, building new housing and homeownership opportunities, clean energy infrastructure, and good-paying jobs across the state. We must respect and protect wages for skilled workers who are on the front lines of building a better future for all Californians.”

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