Connecticut 2021 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB06383 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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7	7		General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6383
8	8		January Session, 2021
9	9		LCO No. 2809
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12	12		Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC
13	13		EMPLOYEES
14	14
15	15
16	16		Introduced by:
17	17		(LAB)
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21	21		AN ACT CONCERNING CA LL CENTERS AND NOTIC E OF
22	22		CLOSURES.
23	23		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
24	24		Assembly convened:
25	25
26	26		Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2021) (a) For purposes of this 1
27	27		section: 2
28	28		(1) "Call center" means a facility or other operation through which 3
29	29		employees receive telephone calls or electronic communication for the 4
30	30		purpose of providing customer assistance or other customer service; 5
31	31		(2) "Employer" means a business entity that employs (A) fifty or more 6
32	32		employees, excluding part-time employees; or (B) fifty or more 7
33	33		employees that in the aggregate work at least fifteen hundred hours per 8
34	34		week, excluding overtime hours, for the purpose of staffing a call center; 9
35	35		(3) "Part-time employee" means an employee who is employed for an 10
36	36		average of fewer than twenty hours per week or who has been 11
37	37		employed for fewer than six of the twelve months preceding the date on 12
38	38		which notice is required under this section; and 13 Raised Bill No. 6383
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45	45		(4) "Commissioner" means the Labor Commissioner. 14
46	46		(b) A call center employer that intends to relocate a call center, or one 15
47	47		or more facilities or operating units within a call center comprising not 16
48	48		less than thirty per cent of the call center's or operating unit's total call 17
49	49		volume, when compared to the previous twelve-month average call 18
50	50		volume of operations or substantially similar operations, from this state 19
51	51		to another state or a foreign country shall notify the commissioner at 20
52	52		least one hundred days prior to such relocation. 21
53	53		(c) A call center employer that violates subsection (b) of this section 22
54	54		shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars for 23
55	55		each day of such violation, except that the commissioner may reduce 24
56	56		such amount for just cause shown. 25
57	57		(d) The commissioner shall compile an annual list of each call center 26
58	58		employer that relocated a call center, or one or more facilities or 27
59	59		operating units within a call center comprising at least thirty per cent of 28
60	60		the call center's total volume of operations, from this state to another 29
61	61		state or a foreign country. The commissioner shall make such list 30
62	62		available to the public and shall prominently display a link to such list 31
63	63		on the Labor Department's Internet web site. 32
64	64		(e) Except as provided in subsection (g) of this section and 33
65	65		notwithstanding any other provision of the general statutes, a call center 34
66	66		employer on the annual list compiled under subsection (d) of this 35
67	67		section shall be ineligible for any direct or indirect state grants, state 36
68	68		guaranteed loans, state tax benefits or other state financial support for a 37
69	69		period of five years from the date such list is published. 38
70	70		(f) Except as provided in subsection (g) of this section and 39
71	71		notwithstanding any other provision of the general statutes, a call center 40
72	72		employer on the annual list compiled under subsection (d) of this 41
73	73		section shall remit the unamortized value of any state grant, guaranteed 42
74	74		loan, state tax benefit or other state financial support such call center 43
75	75		employer has received in the five-year period prior to the date such call 44 Raised Bill No. 6383
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82	82		center was placed on such list. Nothing in this section shall be deemed 45
83	83		to prevent an employer from receiving any grant to provide training or 46
84	84		other employment assistance to individuals who are selected as being 47
85	85		in particular need of training or other employment assistance due to the 48
86	86		transfer or relocation of the employer's call center, facility or operating 49
87	87		units. 50
88	88		(g) The commissioner, in consultation with the appropriate agency 51
89	89		providing a loan or grant, may waive the remittance requirement under 52
90	90		subsection (f) of this section if the employer demonstrates that such 53
91	91		requirement would: (1) Threaten state or national security, (2) result in 54
92	92		substantial job loss in this state, or (3) harm the environment. 55
93	93		(h) The department head of each state agency shall ensure that for all 56
94	94		new contracts or new agreements entered into on and after October 1, 57
95	95		2021, all state business-related call center and customer service work is 58
96	96		performed by state contractors or other agents or subcontractors entirely 59
97	97		within this state, except that, if any such contractor, other agent or 60
98	98		subcontractor performs work outside this state and adds customer 61
99	99		service employees who will perform work pursuant to such new 62
100	100		contracts or agreements, such new employees shall immediately be 63
101	101		employed within this state. Businesses subject to a contract or 64
102	102		agreement agreed to prior to October 1, 2021, with terms extending 65
103	103		beyond October 1, 2023, shall be subject to the provisions of this 66
104	104		subsection if the contract or agreement is renewed. 67
105	105		(i) No provision of this section shall be construed to permit 68
106	106		withholding or denial of payments, compensation or benefits under any 69
107	107		other provision of the general statutes, including, but not limited to, 70
108	108		state unemployment compensation, disability payments or worker 71
109	109		retraining or readjustment funds, to workers employed by employers 72
110	110		that relocate from this state to another state or a foreign country. 73
111	111		(j) Nothing in this section shall be construed as creating a private 74
112	112		cause of action against an employer who has violated, or is alleged to 75
113	113		have violated, any provision of this section. 76 Raised Bill No. 6383
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120	120		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
121	121		sections:
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123	123		Section 1 October 1, 2021 New section
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125	125		LAB Joint Favorable
126		-	APP Joint Favorable
127	126