Coronado’s Mayor Richard Bailey has announced the “We Are Essential San Diego” initiative that calls for allowing all small businesses and their employees to operate under the same or similar health safety protocols as big businesses.
The San Diego Union-Tribune reported earlier this week that nearly 1 in 4 have lost their jobs in San Diego County.
“Even though boutique retailers, photographers, dentists, hairstylists, personal trainers, manufacturers, and so many more types of jobs do not meet the state’s definition of ‘essential,’ each one these jobs lost were essential to someone. Each one of these jobs helped keep a roof over someone’s head and food on the table for a family,” Bailey stated in a public social media post.
Current state policies designate pot shops and liquor stores as “essential” and allow big businesses such as Walmart and Amazon to operate, but prohibit small businesses from opening at all — even if they follow the same health precautions for their employees and customers.
In partnership with local businesses, Mayor Bailey launched an online petition at www.weareessentialsandiego.com to call on the state and county to re-evaluate existing policies to determine whether small business can safely operate under the same or similar protocols as big businesses.
The petitions will be sent to County of San Diego and state of California officials.
Richard Bailey was elected to the Coronado City Council in 2012 as a council member. In 2016 he was elected Mayor of Coronado.
Contact: Richard Bailey
Mayor, City of Coronado
[email protected]
