Newsom picks former Santa Rosa assemblyman for California unemployment board

Michael Allen, the former state assemblyman from Santa Rosa, was reappointed this week by Gov. Gavin Newsom to a position on the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board.

Allen, 72, an attorney and longtime leader in North Bay organized labor, has served on the five-member unemployment panel since 2013, the year after he lost his bid for a second term in the Assembly to then-San Rafael Councilman Marc Levine.

The state board handles appeals related to disputes over taxes, unemployment and disability benefits and meets monthly in Sacramento. Allen’s salary is $153,689.

Such state appointments can appear to be little more than cushy gigs for former politicians. But Allen, who came up in the Democratic Party as district director to state Sen. Pat Wiggins, said his compensation was taxpayer money well spent, describing his role on the unemployment board as a challenging, time-consuming post that puts the financial fates of others in his hands.

“I realize that people think this is a cream puff job, but it’s not, because you’re dealing with families and individuals, and this is their lifeline,” Allen said Thursday in an interview.

Between the board’s regular meetings, members review hundreds of cases per month. While the panel doesn’t consider or rule on terminations, it does decide on appeals from workers who lost jobs and were denied benefits by the state Employment Development Department.

Allen said that when he started on the board, he would sometimes spend 12 hours a day reviewing appeals of decisions related to unemployment benefits and more recently has spent six to 10 hours on workdays reviewing dozens of case files, transcripts and rulings.

Allen emphasized that board members need to stay current on changing issues and standards in the realm of unemployment law. One such issue in California, he said, was the legal “confusion” on cannabis use for employers trying to navigate the state’s legalization of marijuana for adult recreational use against stricter federal prohibition and enforcement.

The handling of sexual harassment cases and matters of reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities also are among the evolving legal issues handled by the board.

“These cases can be very complicated and difficult,” he said. He was first appointed to the board by then-Assembly Speaker John Perez.

Allen contributed $4,450 to Newsom’s campaign in 2017 and 2018, according to state campaign finance records. He characterized himself as a “big supporter” of Newsom going back to his time as lieutenant governor, and praised him for being a “forward thinker” on investment in preschool and public education.

Before his time in the Legislature, Allen served as executive director of the Service Employees’ International Union local 707 and as the longtime president of the North Bay Labor Council. He also was appointed to the Santa Rosa Planning Commission and served as the first chairman on an citizens oversight committee during the inception of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit system.

Prior to his work in politics, he was a psychiatric nurse for Sonoma County.

His six-figure pay on the unemployment board is 40 percent higher than the set salary for California legislators, who also receive a per diem of nearly $200 for each day they are in session.

Allen said he made better money in the private sector and characterized his tenure on the board as another stage of his career as a public servant.

“I love my community and I love public service, and I think it’s a noble profession,” he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Will Schmitt at 707-521-5207 or will.schmitt@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @wsreports.