At its virtual Leadership Meeting, attended by over 105 industry representatives in February, Mike Mohler of the Automotive Parts Services Group was installed as the Association’s 2021 Chair of the Board.

Other officers installed were: Vice-Chair Michael Rukov of RepWorks Marketing; Treasurer Young Suhr, Jr. of APW-Knox Seeman Warehouse; Secretary Tom Ogaz of the Parts Authority; and Immediate Past Chair of the Board, Tom Seboldt of Seboldt Consulting Services.

The meeting was the first formal virtual meeting of CAWA and was lauded as a very successful, informative and well attended event. For a complete press release, see here.

EVERY YEAR starts with a bevy of new laws and regulations affecting employers and business in California, and many of the new rules this time around are an outgrowth of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on workers. Employers in the year ahead have a number of changes they will have to contend with, some of which were enacted near the end of 2020 as emergency regulations or legislation. The following are the top 10 laws and regulations affecting employers in 2021. 

CAWA Arizona Health Trust provides high quality, affordable employee benefits programs to employers in the automotive industry, headquartered in Arizona.

As a member of CAWA, groups may choose from several medical plan options underwritten by BlueCross BlueShield of Arizona. Ancillary benefits include mandatory $15K Life/AD&D through The Standard Insurance Company, dental coverage through BlueCross BlueShield of Arizona and vision coverage through VSP. 

Participating groups must have a minimum of 2 employees enrolled in the plan.

Phone: 206-623-2430

CAWA Quotes: cawaquotes@dimarinc.com

General Information: cawa@dimarinc.com

All Employee Benefit plan companies must be dues-paying members of CAWA. Please view and complete the CAWA Membership Application.

See a discussion here and consult with CAWA’s attorneys should you need to have further guidance (see www.cawa.org). Recall, as a CAWA member you can receive ½ hour per month of FREE legal consultation.

What is this? A tax credit of $5,000 to $7,000 per employee. It’s a tax credit that is part of the CARES act, and was extended as part of the year end Coronavirus Omnibus Spending Act. There are a lot of rules that determine whether or not you qualify, and what type of compensation qualifies for the credit. But, if you can answer yes to any of these questions there is a good chance that you do qualify (see here for details). Source: The Mewes Group

On February 1, 2021, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) posted a User Guide, Excel 

template, and CSV example to facilitate the submission of the newly required pay data report (Pay Data Report) by March 31, 2021 and annually thereafter. The DFEH also added and updated answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) multiple times in January and February. All this indicates that the DFEH is on track to collect Pay Data Reports by the deadline and clarifies related requirements and procedures. 

The User Guide begins by identifying the employers that are required to submit the Pay Data Report as “private employers with 100 or more U.S. employees (and at least one employee in California)". See details here. Source: Littler

In conjunction with the recent adoption of the COVID-19 emergency regulations, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) has developed a model COVID-19 Prevention Plan (CPP) to assist employers in developing their CPP. The emergency regulations to protect workers from COVID-19 went into effect on December 1, 2020, as announced that day in a press release from the Department of Industrial Relations. See here for details.

The pandemic continues to have a dramatic impact on the goods movement system in California and nationally. The entire supply chain is experiencing unprecedented problems that have contributed to a delay in goods reaching distribution centers and consumers. After cargo volumes crashed in the spring at the start of the pandemic, cargo volumes have been squeezed into the last remaining months of 2020 and now into 2021. Normally, the holiday supplies start arriving as early as July, but with the delayed ordering and offshore manufacturing, goods began arriving in higher numbers later in the season. This shortened, concentrated resupply period, more than any other factor, has caused problems throughout the goods movement system. See more details here. Source: Steve Hughes, HCS International

Interested in receiving a scholarship from the Association for your employees, children, family members and others who would be welcomed into the auto care industry?

Applying is easy! The online application process allows students interested in aftermarket careers to submit one application each year online at www.automotivescholarships.com and receive consideration for several scholarships. 

Funds for scholarships come from generous CAWA members and the University of the Aftermarket Foundation.For more information, see www.cawa.org or contact CAWA Member Services at programs@cawa.org. Another member benefit.