- AB 1066 by Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) – Agricultural workers: wages, hours, and working conditions
Existing law sets wage, hour, meal break requirements, and other working conditions for employees and requires an employer to pay overtime wages as specified to an employee who works in excess of a workday or workweek, as defined, and imposes criminal penalties for the violation of these requirements. Existing law exempts agricultural employees from these requirements. Under existing law, the function of the Department of Industrial Relations is to, among other things, foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners of California, to improve their working conditions, and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment.
This bill would remove the exemption for agricultural employees regarding hours, meal breaks, and other working conditions, including specified wage requirements, and would create a schedule that would phase in overtime requirements for agricultural workers, as defined, over the course of 4 years, from 2019 to 2022, inclusive. Beginning January 1, 2022, the bill would require any work performed by a person, employed in an agricultural occupation, in excess of 12 hours in one day to be compensated at the rate of no less than twice the employee’s regular rate of pay. The bill would provide employers who employ 25 or fewer employees an additional 3 years to comply with the phasing in of these overtime requirements. The bill would authorize the Governor to delay the implementation of these overtime pay provisions if the Governor also suspends the implementation of a scheduled state minimum wage increase, as specified. The bill would require the Department of Industrial Relations to update a specified wage order for consistency with these provisions, as specified.
The bill would create a state-mandated local program by including agricultural employees as a class of employees protected by criminal penalties under existing law.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
- AB 2230 by Assemblymember Kansen Chu (D-San Jose) – Overtime compensation: private elementary or secondary academic institutions: teachers
Existing law provides that 8 hours of labor constitutes a day’s work. Under existing law, any work in excess of 8 hours in one workday and any work in excess of 40 hours in any one workweek, and the first 8 hours worked on the 7th day of work in any one workweek, is required to be compensated at the rate of no less than 11/2 times the regular rate of pay for an employee. Existing law also provides that hours worked in excess of 12 hours in one day as well as hours worked in excess of 8 hours on any 7th day of work are to be compensated at the rate of no less than twice the regular rate of pay of an employee. Existing law exempts from these provisions an individual employed as a teacher at a private elementary or secondary academic institution if specified requirements are met, including, among others, that the employee earns a monthly salary equivalent to no less than 2 times the state minimum wage for full-time employment.
This bill would suspend that earnings standard until July 1, 2017. On and after that date, the bill would prescribe a revised earnings standard for exemption from the overtime provisions described above that would require the employee to earn no less than the lowest salary offered by any school district or the equivalent of no less than 70% of the lowest schedule salary offered by the school district or county in which the private elementary or secondary institution is located, as specified.
- SB 1015 by Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino) – Domestic work employees: labor standards
Existing law regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of any man, woman, or minor employed in any occupation, trade, or industry, whether the amount of compensation is measured by time, piece, or otherwise, except as specified. An existing order of the Industrial Welfare Commission regulates wages, hours, and working conditions for household occupations. Existing law makes violations of certain of these provisions and this order a misdemeanor.
Existing law, the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, regulates the hours of work of domestic work employees who are personal attendants and provides an overtime compensation rate for those employees. The Domestic Worker Bill of Rights defines terms for its purposes and requires the Governor to convene a committee to study and report to the Governor on the effects of its provisions on personal attendants and their employers. Existing law repeals the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights as of January 1, 2017.
This bill would delete the repeal date. By extending the effect of the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, the violation of which is a misdemeanor, this bill would expand the definition of a crime, which would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.