California manicurists face uncertain future as bill’s exemption nears end

Michelle Feltman has spent years perfecting her nail art.

"It's extremely creative and it's a way for me to get my art out there into the world," Feltman says.

As a part-time student at Allan Hancock College, she rented booths at local nail salons to continue her work.

"Booth renting was a great option for me that I could arrange my schedule to work with my existing 9 to 5 schedule and still gain clientele," she said.

But this option may disappear for her and many others in 2025 because of Assembly Bill 5.

Originally, the bill aimed to protect workers like rideshare drivers, deciding whether they’re independent contractors or employees. While some jobs were exempt, that exemption for manicurists runs out on Dec. 31, leaving workers like Feltman with limited options.

One of those options is to work in a traditional nail spa, but Feltman says that doesn’t fit her future college schedule.

"That's going to be my only opportunity to work while I'm still enrolled in school because of the opportunity to adjust my schedule," Feltman says.

Another option is to open her own salon, but she says that’s costly.

“It is extremely hard to get your business license to make sure that you have all the insurances that you have that you need.”

Brittany Jackson also works in the beauty industry and says she understands the challenge.

“I know nail techs that have gotten in property and been evicted because of odors and stuff, so to find a place where you can actually work and people are like good about it, it's, it's very limited for us," Jackson said.

Feltman believes the change could results in higher costs for nail services.

"There's not enough nail salons to house all of us," she says. "If we were to all go to a traditional nail salon and all of these nail salons would have to pay extra taxes to determine us as W-2 employees.”

IDistrict 19 Senator Monique Limon told KSBY that while several bills have tried to extend or remove the exemption date, none made it through the legislative process.

“Any legislation that would be proposed to extend this exemption would need to be proposed after December 2, 2024, as the 2024 legislative year has ended.”