SB 846: Employment.

(1)Existing law regulates the labor relations of the state, the courts, and specified local public entities and their employees and grants specified public employees of these entities the right to form, join, and participate in the activities of employee organizations of their choosing. The Ralph C. Dills Act defines fair share fee as the fee deducted by the state employer from the salary or wages of a state employee in an appropriate unit who does not become a member of, and financially support, the recognized employee organization, and prescribes conditions for its use. The Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, if an agency shop agreement is in place, provides for the payment of an agency fee, which requires an employee either to join the recognized employee organization or pay a fee, as specified. A recent Supreme Court opinion held that fair share and agency fees violate the free speech rights of employees who are not employee organization members.

This bill would prohibit the Controller, a public employer, an employee organization, or any of their employees or agents, from being liable under state law for, and would grant to them a complete defense to, any claims or actions under California law for requiring, deducting, receiving, or retaining agency or fair share fees from public employees, and would deny standing to current or former public employees to pursue these claims or actions, if the fees were permitted at the time and paid prior to June 27, 2018. The bill would specify that its provisions apply to pending claims. The bill would define public employer broadly for these purposes, and would include in the definition of an employee organization any labor organization with which the employee organization is affiliated. The bill would make legislative findings and declarations.

(2)Existing law requires that each state agency establish an effective affirmative action program to ensure equal access to positions in state service for individuals with a disability who are capable of remunerative employment, as provided, and requires the Department of Human Resources to, among other things, outline specific actions and establish guidelines for state agencies and departments to set goals and timetables to improve the representation of individuals with a disability in the state workforce. Existing law further requires the department, on or before November 15 of each year, to report to the Governor and the Legislature on the current activity, future plans, and past accomplishments of the overall employment program for individuals with a disability in state government, including an evaluation of the achievement of annual employment objectives. Existing law makes various legislative findings regarding these provisions.

This bill would additionally require that the report include an evaluation of reasonable accommodation policies and practices. The bill would also make various technical changes and revise the above-described legislative findings.

(3)Existing law, the Kern County Hospital Authority Act, authorizes the board of supervisors of the County of Kern to, among other things, establish the Kern County Hospital Authority to manage, administer, and control the Kern Medical Center. Existing law requires the board of supervisors to adopt and implement a personnel transition plan for the transfer of specified personnel from the control of the medical center by the county to the Kern County Hospital Authority. Existing law provides that certain employees of the authority hired before June 27, 2018, may participate, subject to the personnel transition plan and the applicable memorandum of understanding, in the Kern County Employees Retirement Association. Existing law requires employees of the authority hired on or after June 27, 2018, to participate in the Kern County Employees Retirement Association, unless modified in the applicable memorandum of understanding.

This bill would provide that an employee hired by the authority on or after the operative date of this act may participate in the Kern County Employees Retirement Association, as provided, subject to the sole discretion of the retirement board of the association to maintain their tax-qualified or governmental plan status under federal law.

(4)Existing law creates in state government, in the Government Operations Agency, the Department of General Services to provide centralized services, including, but not limited to, planning, acquisition, construction, and maintenance of state buildings and property; purchasing; printing; architectural services; administrative hearings; government claims; and accounting services. Existing law declares it is the policy of this state that a department, agency, or commission shall make reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified applicant or employee who is an individual with a disability, unless the hiring authority can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of its program.

This bill would require the Department of General Services to periodically review policies and procedures in the State Contracting Manual and training provided to state personnel related to reasonable accommodation purchases for state employees. The bill would require the Department of General Services, in consultation with the Department of Human Resources and the Department of Rehabilitation, to post on its Internet Web site, on January 1, 2019, and biennially thereafter, a report on the purchases of services, goods, information technology, and telecommunications related to reasonable accommodations for state employees.

(5)This bill would appropriate $1,371,000 from grant funds received from the federal Department of Labor for expenditure in the 201819 fiscal year to the Department of Industrial Relations for purposes of expanding or supporting existing apprenticeship programs and activities.

(6)This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.