1/6/2015
By Ivan Pereira
A City Council bill set to be introduced Wednesday would create a letter grading system for salons and similar shops.
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and Councilman Rafael Espinal will introduce a bill that would create letter grades for cosmetology businesses, such as nail salons, spas, barber shops and beauty parlors. Diaz said there have been too many cases of businesses that have unsafe conditions or poorly-trained employees and as a result, customers suffer serious health risks like infections.
“The procedures used in many salons can almost be medical in nature, yet oversight of these businesses is very minimal,” the borough president said in a statement.
Diaz and Espinal, who chairs the Consumer Affairs committee, will hold a rally this morning on the steps of City Hall to gather support for the bill. In addition to the letter grades, which will be given out in a similar way that the health department issues grades for restaurants, Diaz wants the city to post a customers’ bill of rights inside the stores.
He also called on the state to expand health and safety training to cosmetology professionals.
“The health and safety of the people of this city is our top priority, and these bills will go a long way toward protecting New Yorkers from unhealthy, potentially dangerous conditions,” he said.
