Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1826 Compare Versions

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1	1	86R13438 KKR-D
2	2	By: Menéndez S.B. No. 1826
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to requiring certain employers to provide paid sick leave
8	8	to employees; providing administrative penalties.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subtitle D, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by
11	11	adding Chapter 83 to read as follows:
12	12	CHAPTER 83. EARNED PAID SICK LEAVE
13	13	Sec. 83.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
14	14	(1) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce
15	15	Commission.
16	16	(2) "Employee" means a person employed by an employer
17	17	for compensation who works at least 80 hours in a calendar year.
18	18	The term includes a person who works through an employment agency,
19	19	as defined by Section 21.002, and a temporary help firm, as defined
20	20	by Section 201.011. The term does not include a person who is:
21	21	(A) an unpaid volunteer; or
22	22	(B) an independent contractor.
23	23	(3) "Employer" means a person who is engaged in an
24	24	industry affecting commerce and who employs one or more employees.
25	25	(4) "Family member" means:
26	26	(A) a person related to an employee within the
27	27	third degree by consanguinity or affinity, as described by
28	28	Subchapter B, Chapter 573, Government Code; or
29	29	(B) a person related to an employee by
30	30	consanguinity or affinity who lives in the employee's household.
31	31	(5) "Family violence" has the meaning assigned by
32	32	Section 71.004, Family Code.
33	33	(6) "Household" has the meaning assigned by Section
34	34	71.005, Family Code.
35	35	(7) "Sexual assault" means any conduct that
36	36	constitutes an offense under Section 22.011 or 22.021, Penal Code.
37	37	(8) "Stalking" means any conduct that constitutes an
38	38	offense under Section 42.072, Penal Code.
39	39	Sec. 83.002. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter does
40	40	not apply to an employer who is:
41	41	(1) a state agency or political subdivision, as those
42	42	terms are defined by Section 21.002; or
43	43	(2) an agency of or a corporation wholly owned by the
44	44	federal government.
45	45	Sec. 83.003. PAID SICK LEAVE REQUIRED. Each employer shall
46	46	provide paid sick leave annually to each employee in this state
47	47	under the terms of this chapter.
48	48	Sec. 83.004. PAID SICK LEAVE ACCRUAL AND CARRYOVER. (a)
49	49	Paid sick leave under this chapter accrues beginning on the date of
50	50	hire at a rate of one hour of paid sick leave for each 30 hours
51	51	worked by an employee.
52	52	(b) An employer may not limit the maximum number of hours of
53	53	paid sick leave an employee may accrue to less than:
54	54	(1) 64 hours per calendar year, if the employer
55	55	employed at least 15 employees, not including family members, at
56	56	any time during the preceding calendar year; or
57	57	(2) 48 hours per calendar year, if the employer
58	58	employed fewer than 15 employees, not including family members, at
59	59	any time during the preceding calendar year.
60	60	(c) Each employee is entitled to carry over not more than
61	61	the number of hours specified in Subsection (b) of unused paid sick
62	62	leave from the current calendar year to the following calendar year
63	63	unless the employer elects to make paid sick leave available at the
64	64	beginning of a year as provided by Section 83.005(c).
65	65	(d) Sick leave hours carried over from a previous calendar
66	66	year must be immediately available to the employee in the following
67	67	calendar year.
68	68	Sec. 83.005. ENTITLEMENT TO USE PAID SICK LEAVE;
69	69	LIMITATIONS. (a) An employee is entitled to use accrued paid sick
70	70	leave under this chapter 60 calendar days after the date of hire,
71	71	unless the employer agrees to an earlier date.
72	72	(b) An employee is not entitled to use accrued paid sick
73	73	leave under this chapter on more than eight calendar days in any
74	74	calendar year.
75	75	(c) An employer may make immediately available to an
76	76	employee at the beginning of a year, quarter, or other period the
77	77	entire amount of paid sick leave that the employee is expected to
78	78	accrue during the year, quarter, or other period.
79	79	(d) At the employer's discretion, an employer may loan paid
80	80	sick leave time to an employee in advance of accrual by the
81	81	employee.
82	82	(e) On the mutual consent of the employee and employer, an
83	83	employee who chooses to work additional hours or shifts during the
84	84	same or following pay period, instead of hours or shifts missed,
85	85	does not use accrued paid sick leave. An employer may establish
86	86	incentives to encourage employees to work additional hours or
87	87	shifts as provided by this subsection instead of using accrued paid
88	88	sick leave.
89	89	(f) Unless an employee policy or collective bargaining
90	90	agreement provides for the payment of accrued fringe benefits on
91	91	termination, an employee is not entitled to payment of unused
92	92	accrued paid sick leave under this chapter on termination of
93	93	employment.
94	94	Sec. 83.006. PAY RATE FOR SICK LEAVE. Each employer shall
95	95	pay each employee for paid sick leave taken at a pay rate equal to
96	96	the normal hourly wage for that employee. The employee's normal
97	97	hourly wage may not be less than the amount required by Section
98	98	62.051.
99	99	Sec. 83.007. USE OF PAID SICK LEAVE. (a) An employee may
100	100	use paid sick leave accrued under this chapter if:
101	101	(1) the employee is ill, is injured, or has an
102	102	appointment with a health care provider;
103	103	(2) it is necessary for the employee to:
104	104	(A) care for a family member who is ill or
105	105	injured; or
106	106	(B) accompany a family member to an appointment
107	107	with a health care provider; or
108	108	(3) the employee or the employee's family member is a
109	109	victim of family violence, sexual assault, or stalking and the
110	110	employee or the family member needs to:
111	111	(A) receive medical attention;
112	112	(B) relocate the employee's or the family
113	113	member's residence;
114	114	(C) receive services from a victim services
115	115	organization; or
116	116	(D) participate in a legal proceeding or
117	117	court-ordered requirement relating to the family violence, sexual
118	118	assault, or stalking.
119	119	(b) An employer may adopt a reasonable procedure to verify
120	120	that the use of paid sick leave by an employee who uses the leave for
121	121	more than three consecutive work days meets the requirements of
122	122	this section.
123	123	(c) An employer may not require an employee to find another
124	124	employee to work during the time the employee intends to use paid
125	125	sick leave as a condition of using paid sick leave.
126	126	Sec. 83.008. NOTICE TO EMPLOYER. (a) If an employee's need
127	127	to use paid sick leave under this chapter is foreseeable, an
128	128	employer may require advance notice of the intention to use paid
129	129	sick leave.
130	130	(b) If an employee's need for paid sick leave is not
131	131	foreseeable, an employer may require the employee to give notice of
132	132	the intention to use paid sick leave under this chapter as soon as
133	133	practicable.
134	134	Sec. 83.009. EMPLOYER STATEMENT. (a) At least monthly, an
135	135	employer shall provide to each employee an electronic or written
136	136	statement that includes an accounting of the paid sick leave taken
137	137	by the employee and the current amount of paid sick leave available
138	138	to the employee.
139	139	(b) An employer shall retain records that document the
140	140	amount of paid sick leave accrued and taken by each employee. The
141	141	records must be maintained for the applicable period of time
142	142	required by 29 C.F.R. Part 516, Subpart A.
143	143	(c) This section does not create a new requirement for a
144	144	certified payroll.
145	145	Sec. 83.010. NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES. (a) An employer shall
146	146	include in the employer's employee handbook a notice containing an
147	147	employee's rights and remedies relating to paid sick leave required
148	148	by this chapter.
149	149	(b) This section does not require an employer to create an
150	150	employee handbook.
151	151	(c) An employer shall display in a conspicuous place,
152	152	accessible to employees, at the employer's place of business a
153	153	notice that describes the requirements of this chapter. The
154	154	commission by rule shall prescribe the form and content of the
155	155	notice.
156	156	Sec. 83.011. EMPLOYER COMPLIANCE. An employer is in
157	157	compliance with this chapter if the employer offers paid leave
158	158	that:
159	159	(1) may be used for the purposes described by Section
160	160	83.007; and
161	161	(2) is accrued at a rate equal to or greater than the
162	162	rate described by Section 83.004.
163	163	Sec. 83.012. BREAK IN SERVICE. (a) Termination of an
164	164	employee's employment by an employer, regardless of whether
165	165	voluntary or involuntary, is considered a break in service for
166	166	purposes of this chapter.
167	167	(b) An employee who is subsequently rehired by the employer
168	168	following a break in service:
169	169	(1) begins to accrue paid sick leave under this
170	170	chapter; and
171	171	(2) is not entitled to any unused hours of paid sick
172	172	leave that accrued before the employee's break in service, unless
173	173	the employee is rehired within six months of separation or the
174	174	employer agrees to reinstate all of the employee's previously
175	175	accrued paid sick leave.
176	176	Sec. 83.013. TRANSFER OF EMPLOYEE. (a) The transfer of an
177	177	employee to a separate division, entity, or location of the same
178	178	employer is not considered to be a break in service for purposes of
179	179	this chapter.
180	180	(b) Following a transfer described by Subsection (a), the
181	181	transferred employee is entitled to:
182	182	(1) retain all accrued paid sick leave under this
183	183	chapter; and
184	184	(2) immediately access the retained paid sick leave
185	185	without any waiting period.
186	186	Sec. 83.014. SUCCESSOR EMPLOYER. If an employer succeeds
187	187	or takes the place of an existing employer, employees of the former
188	188	employer who are employed by the successor are entitled to:
189	189	(1) retain all accrued paid sick leave under this
190	190	chapter; and
191	191	(2) immediately access the retained paid sick leave
192	192	without any waiting period.
193	193	Sec. 83.015. LIMITATIONS OF CHAPTER. This chapter does
194	194	not:
195	195	(1) prevent an employer from providing more paid sick
196	196	leave than is required under this chapter;
197	197	(2) prohibit an employer that provides paid leave in
198	198	addition to the paid sick leave required under this chapter from
199	199	restricting the purposes for which an employee may take that
200	200	additional leave; or
201	201	(3) diminish any rights provided to any employee under
202	202	a collective bargaining agreement.
203	203	Sec. 83.016. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS. A
204	204	collective bargaining agreement may waive the requirements of this
205	205	chapter by clear and unambiguous language within the agreement.
206	206	Sec. 83.017. RETALIATION PROHIBITED. An employer may not
207	207	take retaliatory personnel action or otherwise discriminate
208	208	against an employee because the employee:
209	209	(1) requests or uses paid sick leave in accordance
210	210	with this chapter; or
211	211	(2) files a complaint with the commission alleging the
212	212	employer's violation of this chapter.
213	213	Sec. 83.018. COMPLAINT; HEARING; ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY.
214	214	(a) Any employee aggrieved by a violation of this chapter may file
215	215	a claim with the commission in the manner prescribed by Subchapter
216	216	D, Chapter 61.
217	217	(b) On receipt of a complaint, the commission shall
218	218	investigate and dispose of the complaint in the same manner as a
219	219	wage claim under Subchapter D, Chapter 61.
220	220	(c) An employer who is found by the commission, by a
221	221	preponderance of the evidence, to have violated Section 83.017 is
222	222	liable to the commission for an administrative penalty of $500 for
223	223	each violation.
224	224	(d) An employer who is found by the commission, by a
225	225	preponderance of the evidence, to have violated a provision under
226	226	this chapter other than Section 83.017 is liable to the commission
227	227	for an administrative penalty of not more than $100 for each
228	228	violation.
229	229	(e) If the commission finds that an employer violated
230	230	Section 83.017, the commission shall award to the employee all
231	231	appropriate relief, including payment for used paid sick leave,
232	232	rehiring or reinstatement to the employee's previous job, payment
233	233	of back wages, and reestablishment of employee benefits for which
234	234	the employee otherwise would have been eligible if the employee had
235	235	not been subject to retaliatory personnel action or other
236	236	discrimination.
237	237	(f) A complaint under this section must be brought not later
238	238	than the second anniversary of the date of the violation.
239	239	Sec. 83.019. INFORMATION FROM AND OUTREACH BY COMMISSION.
240	240	(a) The commission shall make available to the public on the
241	241	commission's Internet website information regarding:
242	242	(1) the requirements of and the rights and remedies
243	243	under this chapter; and
244	244	(2) best practices for employers with respect to paid
245	245	sick leave.
246	246	(b) The commission may conduct additional public outreach
247	247	efforts to inform employees and the public about this chapter.
248	248	SECTION 2. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies to
249	249	an employee hired on or after January 1, 2021. For an employee
250	250	hired before January 1, 2021, paid sick leave under Chapter 83,
251	251	Labor Code, as added by this Act, begins to accrue on that date, and
252	252	the employee may begin to use the paid sick leave 90 calendar days
253	253	after that date, unless the employer agrees to an earlier date.
254	254	(b) Chapter 83, Labor Code, as added by this Act, does not
255	255	preempt or override the terms of any collective bargaining
256	256	agreement effective before January 1, 2021.
257	257	SECTION 3. Not later than September 1, 2020, the Texas
258	258	Workforce Commission shall:
259	259	(1) prescribe the form and content of the notice
260	260	required by Section 83.010(c), Labor Code, as added by this Act;
261	261	(2) post on the commission's Internet website the
262	262	information required by Section 83.019(a), Labor Code, as added by
263	263	this Act; and
264	264	(3) adopt rules necessary to implement Chapter 83,
265	265	Labor Code, as added by this Act.
266	266	SECTION 4. Except as provided by Section 3 of this Act, this
267	267	Act takes effect January 1, 2021.