SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Upwards of 100 privately owned motorcoaches were expected to surround the State Capitol here Monday, March 1, in a show of support for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to reform California's beleaguered workers compensation program.
The demonstration by operators was being organized by the California Bus Association.
"Please help us support the governor in his effort to reform workers compensation," CBA member Kevin Creighton of West Valley Charter Lines in Campbell, Calif., said in an e-mail to other operators. "Our goal is to surround the capitol with 100 coaches."
Creighton urged operators to contact their local Chambers of Commerce and ask if they wanted to send members on the coaches to lobby legislators while the buses are in Sacramento.
The event was scheduled to last from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The coaches will assemble at Raley Field in Sacramento and then move on to the capitol. CBA organizers even made arrangements from signs for the coaches.
Among the companies signing up early for the event were: Amador Stage Lines, American Stage Tours, Best Tours, Classic Charter, All West Coachlines,
CUSA-San Francisco, Discovery, El Camino Lines, Orange Belt, Pacific Coast Bus,
Peninsula Charter Lines, Storer Coachways, Super Sightseeing Tours and West Valley.
In California, workers compensation premiums have seriously affected the viability of many businesses, including coach operators. Workers comp rates have increased by more than 100 percent over the last three years.
Only hours after he took office in November, Schwarzenegger acted on one of the cornerstones of his campaign, unveiling a sweeping plan to overhaul the state workers comp system.
Republican Schwarzenegger submitted a plan to the legislature, which is controlled by Democrats, which would squeeze as much as $11 billion in costs out of the system. The Schwarzenegger plan is generally favored by employers, while legislators have been pushing a plan that's more acceptable to labor.
In his State of the State address last month, Schwarzenegger set a March 1 deadline for a reform plan to be adopted.
Workers compensation is designed to ensure that employees who are injured or disabled on the job are provided with fixed monetary awards, eliminating the need for litigation. Workers comp insurance also is supposed to protect employers from claims resulting from injuries to employees.