Can you believe it’s already October?! That means fall is here, and with it comes the arrival of two seemingly inevitable things — pumpkin spice lattes and new employment laws. The California Legislature finished up its legislative session with a rush of activity, ultimately sending hundreds of bills to the governor, who, as usual, signed many labor and employment bills that will impact employers in the new year. So, grab that latte and let’s take a look at some of the new laws, which, unless otherwise noted, take effect January 1, 2023. Click here for details. Source: Our Friends at the California Chamber of Commerce

“With the scholarship award I was able to purchase these tools that are a set of combination wrenches very useful daily and I mean daily, with impact swivels and adapter set. The scholarship check also went towards my tuition, a great relief and help especially after coming out of COVID. Thank you and thanks to the entire organization of CAWA which helps many New Techs to get started in the industry with the scholarship. It has helped me move forward to also express and share my journey to others”. 

These days a lot of sales ‘gurus’ try to refute the fact that sales is still a numbers game. They say things like, “It’s not about the numbers, it’s about the relationships.” Well, they’re right on the latter part of that statement, it is about the relationships but, in order to get the number of relationships you need, you have to be out talking to a lot of people. It’s simple, the more people you talk to, the more business you will do; even a blind pig finds corn. Now granted, you have to have quality behind the numbers, but assuming you’re talking to the right people the right way, it’s all about the numbers. That said, there is also a second way that sales is a numbers game. You can also use numbers to guide and predict success. Here are six ways to do that. Here are six ways to make the sales numbers work for you (click here). Source: John Chapin

“CAWA offers a great venue for industry leaders to take their hats off at the door and come together on topics and issues for the greater good of the automotive aftermarket both regionally and nationally. The support and benefits CAWA provides its members and to the industry are invaluable and will be a big part of the success for many years to come. I’m very appreciative to be part of this great organization”.

~Jason Caldwell, RPS Marketing

California Assembly Bill (AB) 2693, signed into law on September 29, 2022 and effective January 1, 2023, made changes to COVID-19 notification requirements by amending California Labor Code section 6409.6 (Duties of employer when notified of potential exposure to COVID-19) and extending its provisions until January 1, 2024. The main modification will give employers the option to post a notice of potential COVID-19 exposure at the worksite (and on existing employee portals) instead of providing written notice. Learn More. Source: Littler

California employers looking to bring on new employees will have to post the pay scale for the position they’re looking to fill in the listing for the job, under a new law aimed at narrowing the gender and racial gap. See details here. Source: Sacramento Business Journal

This year proved to be another one for the history books, both in a good and maybe not-so-good way, for the aftermarket. On one hand, soaring prices across our industry (and most of retail) put tremendous pressure on low-income consumers. On the other hand, dependency on the personal automobile remains stronger than ever, even though new cars are hard to come by and used car pricing is (well, was) literally off the charts. While the latter has become a new macro tailwind for the aftermarket, the inflation-driven pricing story continues to be front and center as 2022 comes to a close, causing many consumers to delay vehicle maintenance.

Looking back over the last few years, each has yielded unexpected curve-balls for all of us. Of course, a global pandemic is a big one, but thinking specifically about the aftermarket, high-income households shifted their discretionary spending dollars our way. They bought boats, RVs and project cars. They picked-up detailing. Separately, we had mass-transit avoidance and stimulus money being spent on automotive categories. Work-from-home was a big story relative to tanking miles driven, yet that was offset by factors already mentioned. More recently, high gasoline prices and overall inflation have settled in as something new to create uncertainty in the market. Meanwhile, there has been some erosion among lower-income households earning less than $50,000 a year. This consumer cohort has historically been the most important to the DIY automotive categories, but their income is being squeezed by higher prices on basics like food, gas, and rent, so they are now deferring automotive maintenance to stretch where they can.

Where does all this net out in terms of 2022 performance and 2023 expectations? These unexpected curve-balls have landed the aftermarket in a tug of war between the headwinds and tailwinds swirling in the consumer’s economic existence, yet the underlying fundamentals remain relatively strong.

At our free Aftermarket Outlook 2023 presentation on Nov. 1 during AAPEX, we will discuss all of these trends in detail and forecast what trends will impact the trajectory of 2023 performance. We hope you can join us! Source: Nathan Shipley, The NPD Group

On September 29, 2022, Governor Newsom signed AB 1949, which creates protected bereavement leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). As of January 1, 2023, AB 1949 makes it unlawful for an employer to refuse to grant an eligible employee the opportunity to take up to five days of bereavement leave upon the death of a family member. As does CFRA, this new requirement applies to employers with five or more employees. Learn More. Source: Littler

Tell your company’s HR Department (or the person in charge of hiring your associates) that CAWA has an industry specific job board. We created the job board and participate in conjunction with the Auto Care Association, MEMA, SEMA and ASA to name a few national associations. So, your job opening would be viewed by a great number of candidates given the exposure, though not only CAWA distribution, but the other industry association’s communications vehicles, as well.

See https://www.cawa.org/Jobs for details.

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Good employees are hard to find and even harder to keep. Maximize your CAWA membership with a discounted health insurance plan and keep your employees happy! Visit prominencehealthplan.com/cawa to request more information. CAWA Nevada business members with 2 – 50 employees can benefit from collective buying power, accessing the benefits and rates typically offered to large companies.

With Association Health Insurance Plans businesses can:

• OFFER comprehensive health benefits for enrolled members & dependents
• ACCESS the region’s most loved doctors
• ENROLL at any time regardless of any current health coverage
• SAVE money, and
• SHARE those savings with your employees!

Located in Nevada and ready to request a quote or learn more?

Visit prominencehealthplan.com/cawa or call Prominence at 877-737-0184 today!