Mendoza said in a prepared statement Monday that his bill will modernize the state’s labor code. “The United States is a country of immigrants who not only form an integral part of our culture and society, but are also critical contributors to our economic success”.
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If Gov. Jerry Brown has his way, you won’t hear the word “alien” going forward except to describe those “little green men” from outer space. SB432 amends a labor code enacted that year stating that citizens should be given priority over “aliens” when hiring for public-works contracts. Unfortunately, the definition for alien and the order under which employment is to be given to aliens was not repealed and are still found in the Labor Code. While Supreme Court justice Sonia Sotomayor and the New York Times are among those who’ve criticized the phrase illegal alien-the Times’ style guide says the construction is “sinister-sounding”-California’s pre-existing law used only the standalone term alien to refer to noncitizens”.
The law goes into effect in January.
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Brown, a Democrat, also approved AB554 by Assemblyman Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco, to allow high school students who are legal permanent residents to serve as poll workers in California elections. The bill came after more than 80 elementary students sued the Los Angeles Unified School District over sexual misconduct by a former teacher at Miramonte Elementary School.
