COVID-19 has fueled business closures and layoffs across the nation, displacing workers and leaving many without healthcare coverage.
Pasadena Center Operating Co.‘s board of directors defied that trend when it recently voted to provide a year’s worth of healthcare benefits to the company’s laid off and furloughed workers.
“They had initially given them six months of coverage but they extended that to a year,” company spokeswoman Christine Susa said.
The nonprofit– which operates Pasadena Convention Center, the Civic Auditorium, the Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Ice Skating Center — didn’t reveal how many employees will benefit from the healthcare extension.
Board Chairman Tyron Hampton said it was a matter of loyalty.
“We have long-standing employees who have been with us for over 20 and 30 years,” Hampton said in a statement. “We are happy to cover these benefits during this difficult time to show our gratitude for their hard work and dedication over the years.”
Pasadena Center Operating Co. facilities closed in March and have been open only for a limited number of small, essential events — a radical change from pre-pandemic expectations.
“We provided a voting center here for five days,” Susa said. “We also hosted a jury empanelment. Courts are required to have social distancing, and sometimes there’s not enough space in a courtroom to do that.”
The venue has also hosted exams for various city departments.
The convention center and its ancillary facilities were expecting to host more than 350 events this year, and a revenue surplus had been forecast for fiscal 2021. But COVID-19 resulted in hundreds of canceled events and millions of dollars in lost revenue.
Most of the events have been rescheduled for 2021 and 2022, according to Susa.
“Dozens of graduations were canceled this summer, and the LightBox Expo went virtual this year but plans to return, and STITCHES SoCal has rescheduled for 2021,” she said.
Hard hit
Pasadena Center Operating Co. and other businesses that cater to live events have been among the hardest hit during the pandemic.
Conventions, trade shows, musical performances and scores of other events that typically draw hundreds and sometimes thousands of visitors have been put on hold amid strict government mandates as health officials struggle to rein in the virus.
“Once we get the go-ahead from the state to reopen, our book of business for the second half of 2021 is full and looks to be a busy year,” said Jeanne Goldschmidt, executive director of the Pasadena Convention & Visitors Bureau.
A reoccurring issue
Loss of healthcare coverage has been a reoccurring issue with workers who have lost their jobs.
Last month, a group of laid-off Hilton hotel workers staged a “die-in” at the iconic Beverly Hilton Hotel to highlight the need for extended healthcare coverage amid the pandemic.
More than 3,000 employees from more than 20 Los Angeles-area hotels, including Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott — were laid off in March. They claimed they had been without coverage since the beginning of October. But Michael D’Angelo, vice president of labor relations for Hyatt, said employer trustees of the health benefit funds voted to extend coverage through the end of October.
A potential strike between some of Southern California’s largest grocery chains and more than 4,000 warehouse workers and truck drivers who service their stores was narrowly averted last month when the two sides reached a tentative labor agreement.
A sticking point in the negotiations was healthcare.
Teamster unions representing the employees — who work for Albertsons (including Vons and Pavilions) and Kroger (including Ralphs and Food4Less) — say the agreement will preserve affordable healthcare coverage for workers, their families and retirees.
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