The California Labor Federation on Tuesday said the pending recall against Gov. Gavin Newsom is an anti-worker effort.
"The recall will damage the futures of folks working for a living," said Art Pulaski, the executive secretary-treasurer and chief officer of the California Labor Federation. Pulaski made the comments at a news conference at the State Capitol Building in Sacramento.
The federation represents more than 2.1 million workers in 1,200 AFL-CIO and Change to Win labor unions throughout California in industries such as health care, retail, manufacturing and hospitality.
Pulaski emphasized Gov. Newsom’s support for paid sick leave for COVID-19, increased health and safety protections, and consistently following the science when developing a reopening plan.
"This recall effort will not only siphon a significant amount of resources and time away from current issues facing workers and their families but replacing Gov. Newsom with someone who is less worker-friendly threatens the progress we have made and the protections we have had over the last year," said Amy Fletcher, a member of the University Professional and Technical Employees Union.
UPTE represents over 14,000 workers including researchers who contributed to COVID research. Fletcher worries a recall could result in threats to public education and the right to unionize. The current recall effort was written prior to the pandemic, but support for the petition grew among those unhappy with the governor’s stay-at-home order and mask guidance.
This is the sixth attempt to recall Gov. Newsom.
"He has done this to himself," Orrin Heatlie told NBC News. "We wouldn't have been as successful as we've been if it weren't for Gavin Newsom."
Heatlie is one of the leaders of the recall efforts and filed a previous recall petition against Newsom that failed to qualify for the ballot.
In March, organizers of the recall campaign submitted more than the required signatures to trigger a recall election. Voters who signed the petition have until June 8 to ask that their signatures be removed from the petition. If enough signatures remain after the upcoming June 8 deadline, the recall can be certified. The next step would be scheduling a recall vote.
Prominent recall supporters include former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and former gubernatorial candidate and Republican John Cox, who himself is facing legal woes after a judge ordered him to pay close to $100,000 to a political consulting firm last week. It was "one of a string of unpaid bills detailed in a lawsuit and campaign filings" associated with Cox’s failed 2018 bid, according to the LA Times.
The California Republican Party and the Republican National Committee also support the recall efforts.
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