Sec. 73.1. Purpose.
Sec. 73.2. Definitions.
Sec. 73.3. Continued Employment of Eligible Hospitality Workers.
Sec. 73.4. Transition Employment Period.
Sec. 73.5. Notice of Change in Control.
Sec. 73.6. Remedies for Violation.
Sec. 73.7. Exemption for Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Sec. 73.8. No Limitation of Other Rights and Remedies.
Sec. 73.9. Severability.
Sec. 73.10. No Conflict with Federal or State Law.
Sec. 73.11. Undertaking for the General Welfare.
*Editor’s Note:
Former Police Code Article 33E (“Hospitality Industry Worker Retention”) was redesignated as Labor and Employment Code Article 73 by Ord. 221-23, File No. 230835, approved November 3, 2023, effective December 4, 2023, and operative January 4, 2024.
Large hospitality establishments, such as large hotels, large restaurants, and food service facilities in stadiums and arenas, are a major employment base for San Francisco, supporting close to 30,000 jobs, generating over $10 billion in economic activity annually, and providing close to $1 billion in tax and fee revenue to the City. These establishments are also a major draw for visitors to San Francisco. An experienced and professional hospitality workforce benefits tourists and residents alike by ensuring that patrons of San Francisco’s hospitality establishments have a positive and safe customer experience and promoting San Francisco as a world-class destination. These establishments also provide
good, stable employment for persons who are disproportionately low-income. Changes in ownership or management of large hospitality establishments can result in displacement of this workforce. A transitional retention period upon change in ownership, control, or operation of large hospitality establishments promotes stabilization of this vital workforce and helps ensure that visitors and residents of San Francisco continue to benefit from an experienced and professional hospitality industry workforce.
For purposes of this Article 73, the following definitions apply:
“Change in Control” shall mean any sale, assignment, transfer, contribution, or other disposition (including by consolidation, merger, or reorganization) of all or the majority of the assets of, or a controlling interest in, the Incumbent Hospitality Employer or IHE Parent or any Hospitality Establishment under the operation or control of either such Incumbent Hospitality Employer or IHE Parent.
“City” shall mean the City and County of San Francisco.
“Eligible Hospitality Worker” shall mean any individual who has worked for the Incumbent Hospitality Employer at the Hospitality Establishment subject to a Change in Control for at least 90 days prior to the execution of the Transfer Document. Notwithstanding the previous sentence, “Eligible Hospitality Worker” does not include a managerial, supervisory, or confidential employee.
“Employment Commencement Date” shall mean the date on which an Eligible Hospitality Worker retained by the Successor Hospitality Employer pursuant to this Article 73 commences work for the Successor Hospitality Employer in exchange for compensation and benefits under the terms and conditions established by the Successor Hospitality Employer and as required by law.
“Hospitality Establishment” shall mean a Large Hotel, Large Food Service Operation or Large Restaurant.
“Incumbent Hospitality Employer” shall mean the Person that owns, controls, and/or operates the Hospitality Establishment prior to the Change in Control.
“IHE Parent” shall mean any Person who owns or controls the Incumbent Hospitality Employer.
“Large Food Service Operation” shall mean a food and/or beverage concession within or on the grounds of a stadium, arena, theater, auditorium, convention center, or similar facility located in the City with a seating capacity of 5,000 or more at which 100 or more persons have been employed at food and/or beverage concession(s) during any payroll period during the 180 days of operation prior to the Change in Control. For purposes of the 100-employee threshold in the preceding sentence, the number of employees of separately-owned food and/or beverage concession(s) shall be aggregated if operated in the same venue.
“Large Hotel” shall mean a Hotel as defined in Planning Code Section 102 that has 100 or more guest rooms and/or suites of rooms. “Large Hotel” shall not include a Residential Hotel as defined in Section 102 of the Planning Code.
“Large Restaurant” shall mean a “restaurant” as defined in Section 471.3 of the Health Code that has employed 200 or more persons at a single establishment in the City during the 90 days of operation prior to the Change in Control.
“Person” shall mean an individual, proprietorship, corporation, partnership, limited partnership, limited liability partnership or company, trust, business trust, estate, association, joint venture, agency, instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity, whether domestic or foreign.
“Successor Hospitality Employer” shall mean the Person that owns, controls, and/or operates the Hospitality Establishment after the Change in Control.
“Transfer Document” shall mean the purchase agreement or other document(s) effecting the Change in Control.
(a) The Incumbent Hospitality Employer shall, within 10 days after the execution of the Transfer Document, provide to the Successor Hospitality Employer the name, contact information, date of hire, and employment occupation classification of each Eligible Hospitality Worker. For purposes of this subsection (a), contact information shall include but need not be limited to the Eligible Hospitality Worker’s phone number and email address.
(b) The Successor Hospitality Employer shall maintain a retention list of Eligible Hospitality Workers identified by the Incumbent Hospitality Employer as set forth in subsection (a) of this Section 73.3 and shall be required to retain workers from that list for a period beginning on the execution of the Transfer Document and continuing for 90 days after the Hospitality Establishment is fully operational and open to the public under the Successor Hospitality Employer. If there is a gap between the date of the execution of the Transfer Document and delivery of the retention list pursuant to subsection (a) of this Section 73.3, the Successor Hospitality Employer may, if needed, hire employees other than Eligible Hospitality Workers during the interim period for the interim period only.
(c) If the Successor Hospitality Employer extends an offer to an Eligible Hospitality Worker to be retained as an employee, the offer must be made in writing and the Successor Hospitality Employer shall retain written verification of that offer for no less than three years from the date the offer was made. The verification shall include the name, address, date of hire, and employment occupation classification of each Eligible Hospitality Worker to whom the offer was made.
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