Future of Work Commission.

Assembly Member Ortega's legislation to amend California's Labor Code spotlights worker cooperatives as a potential pathway for achieving the Future of Work Commission's economic development objectives. The bill adds new legislative findings regarding federated worker cooperative systems to the Commission's existing mandate, which was established by executive order in 2019 to examine technological changes in the workplace and develop policies supporting California's workers and businesses.

The amendment builds upon the Commission's 2021 report "A New Social Compact for Work and Workers," which outlined recommendations for job creation, poverty elimination, worker benefits, and job quality improvements. The new legislative findings state that worker cooperatives may help advance these goals through democratically managed businesses that prioritize equitable economic development. According to the bill text, these cooperative models can provide workers with increased autonomy, enhanced resilience during economic downturns, lower turnover rates, greater input on workplace conditions, and more balanced compensation structures.

The legislation directs particular attention to historically underresourced communities, calling for examination of how federated worker cooperative systems could support the Commission's objectives in these areas. While the bill requires no new appropriations or fiscal commitments, it expands the policy framework guiding the Commission's work to explicitly include cooperative business models as a focus area for study and potential policy development.