Recap of Day 2 at the 2007 CALSAGA Annual Conference

On the second day of the conference, California Chamber of Commerce President Allan Zaremberg started the morning off and spoke on mandated healthcare and the potential impact it could have on the business community.  Additionally, Zaremberg spoke about the importance of the business community getting involved in the political process, as it relates to political contributions and how those contributions send a message that your industry desires to be a major player in Sacramento.   

One of the highlights of the second day was two presentations on the issue of meal and rest breaks from Mike Prosio who is the Chief Deputy Legislative Secretary to Governor Schwarzenegger and Laura Innes from Simpson, Garrity & Innes. 

Prosio gave the viewpoint from the Governor’s office and explained how the Governor would like to see a universal solution to the meal and rest break issue, as opposed to an industry-by-industry fix.  Prosio applauded our industry and CALSAGA for meeting with him throughout the past year and he encouraged the same dialogue again in 2008. 

As many of you know, Innes spoke at our Annual Conference last year, so it was good to have her back once again to give a legal perspective on the issue.  Innes cited several recent cases on meal and rest breaks, including the recent Brinker Restaurant Group v. Supreme Court case.  Click here to view her PowerPoint presentation.

Because this is such an important issue, we may ask Innes and others to participate in a meal and rest break forum in early 2008 to discuss further.

Wrapping up the day, we were fortunate enough to have Sacramento Police Chief Albert Nájera join us at lunch to talk about enhancing the relationship between law enforcement and the private security industry.  Chief Nájera explained that law enforcement has been working with BSIS on educating police officers on the different types of security officers, and what to look for with regards to licensing and training.

The program ended with a panel discussion with BSIS Chief Paul Johnson, Deputy Chief Rick Fong and Cathy Kester from the Department of Justice (DOJ).  Johnson gave attendees an update on the latest from BSIS and mentioned that their agency has stepped up enforcement throughout the State – most recently taking part in a joint sting operation with the Oxnard Police Department, where several security officers and a PPO were cited for not complying with State licensing and training requirements.  Kester finished off the panel by explaining the guard card licensing process from the perspective of DOJ and what challenges her department has encountered.

In closing, thank you to our sponsors, exhibitors and attendees for making it a successful event!  Please visit our Annual Conference Recap page by clicking here.  There you will find new photos, PowerPoint presentations and so much more.

We look forward to seeing you at the 2008 Annual Conference, November 6 – 7 at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek Hotel and Spa in Napa!  We will have much more information on that in the coming months!