January 1, Self-Checkout Crackdown: New Law Threatens Future of Retail Convenience

Recent times saw self-checkout becoming the only option for many shoppers. However, several retailers have started reducing their reliance on self-checkout machines due to increasing theft and customer complaints. A new law could potentially ban self-checkout in some stores altogether.

California Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas introduced bill SB 1446 on Feb. 16, targeting “self-checkout stations in large grocery and drug retail stores.” This “self-checkout ban” aims to impose new regulations on retailers like Walmart and Target that use these machines.

If the bill passes, some companies will be banned from offering self-checkout options to customers in California unless they meet five specific conditions.

One of the most notable requirements is that shoppers can only use self-checkout if they are purchasing 10 or fewer items. Retailers like Target have already started implementing this at most of their stores nationwide.

The new bill would also require retailers to prohibit self-checkouts for purchasing certain products. These include items requiring an ID check, such as alcohol and tobacco, and “items subject to special theft-deterrent measures.”

SB 1146 ties certain conditions to staffing as well. To offer self-checkout services, retailers in California would need at least one manual checkout station staffed by an employee available to customers simultaneously.

Employees would also need to monitor self-checkouts, with one employee unable to monitor more than two self-checkout lanes at once. Moreover, any employee monitoring a self-checkout station cannot oversee other duties simultaneously.

This bill aims to protect employees. Senator Smallwood-Cuevas and other labor advocates supporting SB 1446 claim that “the proliferation of self-checkout has caused [an] increase in theft and violence” against grocery and retail store workers in California.

Senator Smallwood-Cuevas said, “While it’s crucial to adapt to new technologies, protecting jobs and worker safety must be prioritized in the process.” California Labor Federation COO Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher added that replacing grocery workers with automated machines has made stores less safe for everyone.

However, the California Retailers Association and the California Chamber of Commerce sent a letter to Senator Smallwood-Cuevas. They “respectfully oppose” SB 1446, believing the bill would “place unnecessary restrictions on retail grocery and pharmacy stores implementing self-checkout.” They argue that the restrictions are “misguided and unnecessary and will not result in reduced retail theft in stores.”

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