California Assembly Bill AB1744 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 1744AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 25, 2010 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Portantino FEBRUARY 8, 2010  An act to amend Section 706.011 of the Code of Civil Procedure, relating to earnings withholding orders.   An act to amend Section 19635 of, and to add Chapter 10.4 (commencing with Section 3524.1) to Division   4 of Title 1 of, the Government Code, relating to public employees.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 1744, as amended, Portantino.  Earnings withholding orders.   Public employees: rights.   The existing Bill of Rights for State Excluded Employees prescribes various rights and terms and conditions of employment for excluded employees, defined as certain supervisory, managerial, and confidential state employees.   This bill would enact the Public Employees' Bill of Rights Act that would apply to state employees other than excluded employees. The stated purpose of this act would be to inform public employees of their rights and terms of employment in order to promote harmonious personnel relations between public employees and their employers. This bill would, among other things, provide that state employees shall be entitled to full salary and benefits earned for work performed even when the annual Budget Act is not timely enacted. This bill would also authorize the formation of peer review committees for professional staff to provide input regarding workplace operations.   Existing law requires notice of any adverse action against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law to be served within 3 years after the cause for discipline, upon which the notice is based, first arose. Existing law declares adverse action based on fraud, embezzlement, or the falsification of records valid, if notice of the adverse action is served within 3 years after the discovery of the fraud, embezzlement, or falsification.   This bill would require notice of the adverse action to be served and the investigation to be completed within one year after the cause for discipline first arose in order for an adverse action to be valid against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law of this state.   Existing law provides procedures for the enforcement of monetary judgments, including the issuance of an earnings withholding order. Existing law provides various definitions for these purposes.   This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no   yes  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Chapter 10.4 (commencing with S   ection 3524.1) is added to Division 4 of Title 1 of the   Government Code   , to read:  CHAPTER 10.4. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES' BILL OF RIGHTS ACT 3524.1. This chapter shall be known as the Public Employees' Bill of Rights Act. 3524.2. The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the rights and protections provided to public employees under this chapter constitute a matter of important concern. The Legislature further finds and declares that the efficient and effective administration of public programs depends upon the maintenance of high morale and the objective consideration of issues between public employees and their employer. 3524.3. The purpose of this chapter is to inform public employees of their rights and terms of employment, and to inspire dedicated service and promote harmonious personnel relations between public employees and their employer. 3524.4. For purposes of this chapter: (a) "Contractor" means any person, other than a civil service employee, who contracts to perform services for a state agency. (b) "Employee" means a civil service employee, other than an excluded employee, of the State of California. (c) "Employer" includes all state agencies, boards and commissions as may be designated by law that employ civil service employees, with the exception of the University of California. (d) "Excluded employee" means any of those employees described in subdivision (b) of Section 3527. (e) "Professional employee" means an employee described in Section 3521.5. 3524.5. (a) The employer shall provide to each employee at the onset of his or her employment and at reasonable intervals, a current, detailed, and accurate job description, including a complete description of the scope of his or her duties, salary, and benefits information. (b) The work of the employee shall not be standardized in relation to a given period of time, nor shall unreasonable quotas be imposed on an employee. (c) The employer shall not unreasonably prevent the employee from using his or her daily rest and lunch periods as well as his or her annual, vacation, sick, or other earned leaves. An employee shall be paid a salary proportionate to the time base he or she is scheduled to work. (d) An employee may not be compelled to perform extra work, including work caused by vacancies, furloughs, or layoffs, without fair compensation. (e) An employee shall enjoy priority in filling permanent, overtime, and on call positions over excluded employees and contractors. (f) County employees shall earn one and one-half times the regular rate pay for overtime hours worked, upon approval by the board of supervisors. 3524.6. Each employee shall have the right to a safe and healthy working environment. Grievances relating to this right shall be given a priority status. 3524.7. (a) Neither the employer, nor any of its excluded employees or contractors, shall unlawfully discriminate against an employee on the basis of age, sex, race, religion, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, marital status, physical handicap, or sexual orientation. (b) There shall be no reprisals for any employee actions involving exercise of rights under this section, in addition to the protections afforded in the Ralph C. Dills Act (Chapter 10.3 (commencing with Section 3512)) and the California Whistleblower Protection Act (Chapter 6.5 (commencing with Section 8547) of Division 1 of Title 2). Employees shall be provided with a confidential hotline to report waste, abuse of authority, and violation of law or threat to public safety. (c) An employee shall have the right to sue the employer for damages for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, the California Family Rights Act, and the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. 3524.8. (a) An employee is entitled to be fairly and progressively disciplined for any deficient or inappropriate behavior or job performance. The employer shall ensure that preventive and corrective actions are taken before any adverse action is administered in accordance with the current "Guide to Employee Conduct and Discipline," or any successor publication, distributed by the Department of Personnel Administration. (b) Employers shall adhere to strict due process and periodic written notice procedures while investigating employees. Those investigations shall not ordinarily exceed the timeframe contained in the original notice. 3524.9. (a) The employer shall ensure that full salary and benefits will be paid to an employee for work done, even when the Legislature has not timely passed the annual Budget Act for the fiscal year in which the work is performed. The employer shall honor the contractual pension arrangement made with the employee when he or she leaves state service, regardless of the fiscal status of the state agency for which the employee performed the work. (b) An employee shall have the right to pursue employment outside of state service. 3524.10. The employer shall honor the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) under which each employee is covered. The employee is entitled to receive timely responses from the employer in all areas covered by the MOU, especially in response to complaints and grievances. Any grievance filed by an employee shall be considered to have been resolved in favor of the employee if any of the contractual timelines are violated by the employer. 3524.11. (a) This section shall apply to an employee who is required to maintain a professional license to perform his or her work. (b) An employee's professional judgment related to his or her work and work product shall not be interfered with nor infringed upon by nonprofessional or unlicensed employees or supervisors. An employee shall not be required to perform work that could put his or her professional license in jeopardy. (c) Performance and merit evaluations shall include significant input from a management or supervisory peer who has the same or a higher professional status or license, as applicable, as that held by the employee. (d) If there are no professional staff employed by the employer, a peer review committee shall be formed and authorized to have regular input regarding the operation of the workplace. (e) Professional staff and the respective bylaws of the professional staff shall be recognized by the employer. Professional staff shall have regular input regarding the operation of the workplace. (f) Professional employees named in lawsuits as codefendants along with the employer and the state shall have the right to representation. These employees shall enjoy all the same rights afforded to all legal clients, including the right to be informed of a settlement by the state. If there is a conflict of interest between the employee and the state as codefendants, the state shall provide independent counsel for the employee.   SEC. 2.   Section 19635 of the   Government Code   is amended to read:  19635. No adverse action shall be valid against any state employee for any cause for discipline based on any civil service law of this state, unless notice of the adverse action is served  and the investigation is completed  within  three years   one year  after the cause for discipline, upon which the notice is based, first arose.  Adverse action based on fraud, embezzlement, or the falsification of records shall be valid, if notice of the adverse action is served within three years after the discovery of the fraud, embezzlement, or falsification.   SECTION 1.   Section 706.011 of the Code of Civil Procedure is amended to read: 706.011. As used in this chapter: (a) "Earnings" means compensation payable by an employer to an employee for personal services performed by the employee, whether denominated as wages, salary, commission, bonus, or otherwise. (b) "Earnings assignment order for support" means an order, made pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 5200) of Part 5 of Division 9 of the Family Code or Section 3088 of the Probate Code, which requires an employer to withhold earnings for support. (c) "Employee" means a public officer and any individual who performs services subject to the right of the employer to control both what shall be done and how it shall be done. (d) "Employer" means a person for whom an individual performs services as an employee. (e) "Judgment creditor," as applied to the state, means the specific state agency seeking to collect a judgment or tax liability. (f) "Judgment debtor" includes a person from whom the state is seeking to collect a tax liability under Article 4 (commencing with Section 706.070), whether or not a judgment has been obtained on that tax liability. (g) "Person" includes an individual, a corporation, a partnership or other unincorporated association, a limited liability company, and a public entity.