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METROPOLIS LA COUNTY
Grocers settle lawsuit for false advertising, unfair competition
LOS ANGELES (MNS)—Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced today that Albertsons, Vons, and affiliates will pay $3.9 million to settle a civil law enforcement complaint that alleged the California corporations engaged in false advertising and unfair competition.
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“False advertising preys on consumers, who are already facing rising costs, and unfairly disadvantages companies that play by the rules,” District Attorney Gascón said. “This kind of corporate conduct is especially egregious when it comes to essential groceries, as Californians rely on accurate advertised prices to budget food for their families. Our office’s Consumer Protection Division works to protect consumers and hold corporations accountable for breaking the law.”
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The complaint alleged that Albertsons and Vons unlawfully charged customers prices higher than their lowest advertised price. Furthermore, Albertsons had issues with inaccurate weights on the labels of their products.
Some items sold by weight such as produce, meats, baked goods and other items had less product in the package than was displayed on the package label. For those items, a grocer may only charge for the product’s actual weight; the packaging is not included in the overall weight.
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LADA’s Consumer Protection Division, in partnership with the consumer protection units of the district attorneys’ offices of Marin, Alameda, Sonoma, Riverside, San Diego, and Ventura counties, investigated and prosecuted this matter. The case was filed in Marin County Superior Court.
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Under the judgment, signed by Marin County Superior Court Judge Sheila Lichtblau on September 26, Albertsons and Vons are required to pay $3,213,000 in civil penalties and $749,500 in costs and restitution to cover investigation costs and support future enforcement of consumer protection laws.
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The judgment also prohibits the companies from engaging in false or misleading advertising.
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The judgement requires the grocers to implement a Price Accuracy Program, including a Price Accuracy Guarantee that allows a consumer to be compensated up to $5 if they are overcharged. The program is an incentive to encourage consumers to report false advertising to the store as soon as it is discovered.
The company did not admit wrongdoing. It was cooperative in the investigation and has taken steps to correct the violations.
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Albertsons Companies, Safeway Inc., and The Vons Companies operate 589 stores in California.
LA County highlights equitable and inclusive contracting process
LOS ANGELES (MNS)—Los Angeles County continues to make progress with the Equity in County Contracting (ECC) Initiative, a groundbreaking effort to promote equitable access to billions of dollars in procurement opportunities for small businesses, community-based organizations (CBOs), small enterprises and nonprofits.
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During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, the county allocated $94 Million funding from the America Rescue Plan for small businesses, entrepreneurs and nonprofits hit hard by the pandemic. The ECC initiative intends to implement policies and practices that prioritize inclusivity and diversity in contracting, giving all businesses and organizations equal access to lucrative contracts.
Spearheaded by the Department of Economic Opportunity and the Internal Services Department, in partner- ship with the Center for Nonprofit Management, the initiative will enhance collaboration between the county and its present and future partners.
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"Equitable and inclusive contracting practices are fundamental to fostering a thriving and resilient economy that works for everyone," said Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell. "By expanding access to procurement opportunities for small employers, CBOs, and nonprofits, we are not only promoting economic development but also advancing social equity and justice."
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The ECC initiative encompasses a range of strategies and measures designed to remove barriers and create pathways for underrepresented business enterprises to participate in county contracting opportunities. These efforts include establishing a centralized contracting office, an advance payment policy to allow for smoother cash flow, a zero-interest loan program, targeted outreach and technical assistance programs, capacity-building initiatives, and transforming the county’s current procurement processes and systems.
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"At DEO, we strive to make LA County [...] the best place to live, work, and do business," said Kelly LoBianco, director for the Department of Economic Opportunity. "Our Equity in County Contracting efforts with the Internal Services Department and Center for Nonprofit Management are key to making that a reality.
"By taking a critical look at our contracting systems and our impact alongside our community members, we have identified dozens of ways to reduce the red tape and build the capacity of small businesses and nonprofits to participate," LoBianco said. "By diversifying our vendor pool and ensuring they have meaningful access to our $6-8 billion in county procurement opportunities, we will build resiliency among our vendors, engines of our local economy, increase competition for quality goods and services, and better serve the public good overall. We’re thankful to the Board for prioritizing this work."
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Michael Owh, interim director of the county's Internal Services Department asserted that the county's great- ness is "sustained by the hard work of our small business, community-based, and nonprofit partners."
“We are grateful for the Board of Supervisors for their leadership and excited to continue the work of trans- forming county procurement through the Equity in County Contracting Initiative,” Owh said.
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For more information on the LA County Department of Economic Opportunity, visit opportunity.lacounty.gov.
"I love being a Black-owned, woman-owned company, I also like that it’s very physical. When I got into this, I was 29. I had to be smart. It was a great opportunity to grow." — Jacqueline Pruitt
Running rebar like
a boss
Jacqueline Pruitt
is helping construct 'Destination Crenshaw'
By DARLENE DONLOE, Contributing Writer
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CRENSHAW—Jacqueline Pruitt, founder and owner of Marvella Steel Placers (MSP) starts her day at 6 a.m., sitting at a desk in front of the computer in her spacious, yet sparsely decorated office in Signal Hill.
Behind her sits a fish tank where her turtle “Shelley” lives. Behind the tank is a poster visible through the water with Martin Luther King Jr.’s image and the words, “I Have A Dream.”
But Pruitt has more than a dream. As one of only a handful of female- and Black-owned rebar instal- lation companies in the US, the Long Beach native is a trailblazer as well as a no-nonsense boss.
METRO CRENSHAW-LAX K LINE
Marvella, which launched in 2016, has installed rebar (steel bar used to reinforce concrete) on three Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) Purple Line stations and three stations at the Regional Connector Transit Project. The company also worked on the I-15 freeway between the 91 and 10 freeways.
Pruitt’s company currently is provides rebar to Destination Crenshaw (DC), the 1.3-mile open-air art and culture corridor being built along Crenshaw Boulevard. The project includes the landmark Sankofa Park, currently under construction, and for which MSP has delivered and installed rebar.
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With an average of 20-60 employees working on various transportation systems such as trains and highways, Pruitt must keep her eyes on the ball. Depending on the size of the project, Pruitt said her smallest contract could be in the neighborhood of $15,000 and her largest about $9.6 million.
In the highly competitive construction industry, Pruitt has fought for acceptance. Because Destination Crenshaw is special to her, she fought equally hard to win the bid for the history-making project.
"When I started reading about Destination Crenshaw, I said, 'this is my job,'" Pruitt said. "I really wanted it because it means something to me. It has meaning. I frequent that area. Leimert Park is special. To build that— yeah—I had to be a part of it. I had to."
Hers is a track record to make any company owner proud, but Pruitt has bested unusually long odds. When Pruitt was younger, she took several wrong turns. She wrestled with drug use and homelessness and was in and out of jail.
That life ended on May 19, 2003.
"I got arrested at one of the places I used to hang out," Pruitt said. "The idea to shoot up drugs was in my mind when the police came. A week prior I had broken down and asked God to help me. Thankfully, my parole officer sent me to treatment instead of jail. It worked."
Since then, Pruitt has been sober.
If not for the courage she mustered to turn her life around, MSP would have never been a dream. With her commitment, came a business model that has stood her in good stead.
Jacqueline Pruitt has earned her mettle on projects like Berth 200 in the Port of Los Angeles, the Automated Container Movers in the Port of Long Beach, freeway lane bridges, abutments, retaining walls and barrier rail on the 91 Freeway, metal decks for the famous Wilshire Grand Center high-rise, and the Hollywood Park Casino.
"We perform safely and do high-quality work in the field and in the office," she said. "We are professional; we remain in compliance, have reasonable prices, and we work with our customers and provide certification if their project needs to meet certifications."
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Since Marvella Steel Placers opened, the company has completed 22 jobs.
"Not bad for a girl," Pruitt said, smiling.
Now that she’s the boss and no longer physically working on construction sites, Pruitt said she misses "getting my hands dirty.
"The last time I got my hands dirty was more than a year ago," she said. "Then Destination Crenshaw started, and I couldn’t help but put my tool belt on and tie some bar with the guys. My hands are soft now. But, in case I’m needed, I still have my tool belt."
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On this morning, Pruitt is checking for upcoming jobs, greeting some of her workers, taking calls, making deals, and talking to one of her foremen about the progress on a current job—all in the span of five minutes. And, she makes it look easy.
This is the life she dreamed for herself.
"I love being a Black-owned, woman-owned company," she said. "I also like that it’s very physical. When I got into this, I was 29. I had to be smart. It was a great opportunity to grow."
Marvella Steel Placers is named after Pruitt’s mother as a way to pay homage to the woman who always showed her unconditional love.
"My mother was my everything," Pruitt said. "Even though I was doing some things she didn’t necessarily approve of, she still loved me."
Now that Pruitt is gaining success, she’d like to see more women making their mark in construction.
"Women have a place in construction," she said. "Just look at me. If someone doesn’t give you a chance, make a way for yourself. There’s a place for everybody. Black women come from Egyptian queens. We can do anything."
Pruitt came by her interest in construction honestly. Her father, now 87, was in construction. She recalls vividly him being a hard worker who would leave the house at 4 a.m. to go to work.
"At the time, I didn’t know what he did," she said. "I knew he came home dirty and smelled unusual."
Two decades later, her actual leap into construction began quite by accident. One day she ran into a female friend, who is a carpenter working on a large project.
"She was dressed all dirty," said Pruitt, who studied psychology at Long Beach City College and Cal State Fullerton. "I asked her what she did and she told me. I asked how much it paid. She told me, and I said, "Where do I sign up?"
That’s when Pruitt applied for a pre-apprenticeship—during which she was taught trades from laying concrete, to plumbing, framing, and, rebar.
"When I got into construction, I had to learn to be assertive," she said. "My foreman told me to grow some balls. I learned how to be assertive and let people know what they have to do. I started as an apprentice, then became a journeyman, then a foreman. I then became a general foreman for the guy that got me into rebar. He planted a seed."
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In Pruitt's third year as an apprentice, she earned the lead ironworker position on projects such as Berth 200 in the Port of Los Angeles, the Automated Container Movers in the Port of Long Beach, freeway lane additional bridges, abutments, and miles of retaining walls and barrier rail on the 91 Freeway.
Additionally, she worked slab on metal decks for the famous Wilshire Grand Center high-rise. Shortly after achieving journeyman status, she earned the foreman position and built the Hollywood Park Casino on time and under budget. From there she began managing three or more jobs simultaneously.
Pruitt has steadily grown into her self-assurance but admits she "had no idea" what owning her own company entailed.
"Well, I didn’t know this was an owning-your-own-company type deal," said Pruitt, who brought in her niece, as office manager, to help her run MSP. "All I wanted to do, initially, was to just go grab some guys I worked with and go do a job."
Instead, she ended up going to bidding classes and learning how to look for jobs.
"It took a year-and-a-half to figure it out," Pruitt said. “I was told by some people that because I was a Black woman-owned company, I’d be at a disadvantage contract-wise."
Today Pruitt is positioning Marvella Steel Placers to be the premier rebar installation company signatory to Ironworkers Local 416 holding the following designations: SBE, DBE, WBE, MBE, LBE, CBE and LGBTBE.
Throughout her life, Pruitt said people gave her a chance, so she wants to pay it forward.
"My hope is to continue to be a better me and be in a position to help others," she said. "There is a big piece of pie to be had. But [more people need to get] to the table to eat it.”
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Darlene Donloe is a freelance journalist based in Los Angeles.