BILL NUMBER: AB 1675 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 948
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 14, 2001
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 14, 2001
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 14, 2001
PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 13, 2001
AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 7, 2001
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 2, 2001
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 25, 2001
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 17, 2001
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 30, 2001
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Koretz
FEBRUARY 28, 2001
An act to add Part 12 (commencing with Section 2695.1) to Division
2 of the Labor Code, relating to sheepherders.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1675, Koretz. Sheepherders.
Existing law regulates various aspects of workplace and employee
safety and health.
This bill would regulate the industry of sheepherding by providing
specific requirements that employers of sheepherders must implement
with regard to sheepherder wages, hours, breaks, housing, tools, and
working conditions. The bill would establish specified penalties for
employers who fail to comply with these provisions.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Part 12 (commencing with Section 2695.1) is added to
Division 2 of the Labor Code, to read:
PART 12. SHEEPHERDERS
2695.1. (a) In enacting this legislation, it is the intent of the
Legislature to codify certain labor protections that should be
afforded to sheepherders, as defined. The provisions of this section
are in addition to, and are entirely independent from, any other
statutory or legal protections, rights, or remedies that are or may
be available under this code or any other state law or regulation to
sheepherders either as individuals, employees, or persons.
(b) All terms used in this section and in Section 2695.5 have the
meanings assigned to them by this code or any other state law or
regulation.
2695.2. (a) (1) For a sheepherder employed on a regularly
scheduled 24-hour shift on a seven-day-a-week "on-call" basis, an
employer may, as an alternative to paying the minimum wage for all
hours worked, instead pay no less than the monthly minimum wage
adopted by the Industrial Welfare Commission on April 24, 2001. Any
sheepherder who performs nonsheepherding, nonagricultural work on any
workday shall be fully covered for that workweek by the provisions
of any applicable laws or regulations relating to that work.
(2) After July 1, 2002, the amount of the monthly minimum wage
permitted under paragraph (1) shall be increased each time that the
state minimum wage is increased and shall become effective on the
same date as any increase in the state minimum wage. The amount of
the increase shall be determined by calculating the percentage
increase of the new rate over the previous rate, and then by applying
the same percentage increase to the minimum monthly wage rate.
(b) (1) When tools or equipment are required by the employer or
are necessary to the performance of a job, the tools and equipment
shall be provided and maintained by the employer, except that a
sheepherder whose wages are at least two times the minimum wage
provided herein, or if paid on a monthly basis, at least two times
the monthly minimum wage, may be required to provide and maintain
handtools and equipment customarily required by the trade or craft.
(2) A reasonable deposit may be required as security for the
return of the items furnished by the employer under provisions of
paragraph (1) upon issuance of a receipt to the sheepherder for such
deposit. The deposits shall be made pursuant to Article 2
(commencing with Section 400) of Chapter 3. Alternatively, with the
prior written authorization of the sheepherder, an employer may
deduct from the sheepherder's last check the cost of any item
furnished pursuant to paragraph (1) when the item is not returned.
No deduction shall be made at any time for normal wear and tear. All
items furnished by the employer shall be returned by the sheepherder
upon completion of the job.
(c) No employer of sheepherders shall employ a sheepherder for a
work period of more than five hours without a meal period of no less
than 30 minutes, except that when a work period of not more than six
hours will complete a day's work, the meal period may be waived by
the mutual consent of the employer and the sheepherder. An employer
may be relieved of this obligation if a meal period of 30 minutes
cannot reasonably be provided because no one is available to relieve
a sheepherder tending flock alone on that day. Where a meal period
of 30 minutes can be provided but not without interruption, a
sheepherder shall be allowed to complete the meal period during that
day.
(d) To the extent practicable, every employer shall authorize and
permit all sheepherders to take rest periods. The rest period,
insofar as is practicable, shall be in the middle of each work
period. The authorized rest times shall be based on the total hours
worked daily at the rate of 10 minutes net rest time per four hours,
or major fraction thereof, of work. However, a rest period need not
be authorized for sheepherders whose total daily worktime is less
than three and one-half hours.
(e) When the nature of the work reasonably permits the use of
seats, suitable seats shall be provided for sheepherders working on
or at a machine.
(f) After January 1, 2003, during times when a sheepherder is
lodged in mobile housing units where it is feasible to provide
lodging that meets the minimum standards established by this section
because there is practicable access for mobile housing units, the
lodging provided shall include at a minimum all of the following:
(1) Toilets and bathing facilities, which may include portable
toilets and portable shower facilities.
(2) Heating.
(3) Inside lighting.
(4) Potable hot and cold water.
(5) Adequate cooking facilities and utensils.
(6) A working refrigerator, which may include a butane or propane
gas refrigerator, or for no more than a one-week period during which
a nonworking refrigerator is repaired or replaced, a means of
refrigerating perishable food items, which may include ice chests,
provided that ice is delivered to the sheepherder, as needed, to
maintain a continuous temperature required to retard spoilage and
ensure food safety.
(g) After January 1, 2003, all sheepherders shall be provided with
all of the following at each worksite:
(1) Regular mail service.
(2) A means of communication through telephone or radio solely for
use in a medical emergency affecting the sheepherder or for an
emergency relating to the herding operation. If the means of
communication is provided by telephone, the sheepherder may be
charged for the actual cost of nonemergency telephone use. Nothing
in this subdivision shall preclude an employer from providing
additional means of communication to the sheepherder which are
appropriate because telephones or radios are out of range or
otherwise inoperable.
(3) Visitor access to the housing.
(4) Upon request and to the extent practicable, access to
transportation to and from the nearest locale where shopping,
medical, or cultural facilities and services are available on a
weekly basis.
(h) In addition to any other civil penalties provided by law, any
employer or any other person acting on behalf of the employer who
violates or causes to be violated the provisions of this section
shall be subject to a civil penalty, as follows:
(1) For the initial violation, fifty dollars ($50) for each
underpaid employee for each pay period during which the employee was
underpaid, plus an amount sufficient to recover the unpaid wages.
(2) For any subsequent violation, one hundred dollars ($100) for
each underpaid employee for each pay period during which the employee
was underpaid, plus an amount sufficient to recover the unpaid
wages.
(3) The affected employee shall receive payment of all wages
recovered.
(i) If the application of any provision of any subdivision,
sentence, clause, phrase, word, or portion of this legislation is
held invalid, unconstitutional, unauthorized, or prohibited by
statute, the remaining provisions thereof shall not be affected and
shall continue to be given full force and effect as if the part held
invalid or unconstitutional had not been included.
(j) Every employer of sheepherders shall post a copy of this part
in an area frequented by sheepherders where it may be easily read
during the workday. Where the location of work or other conditions
make posting impractical, every employer shall make a copy of this
part available to sheepherders upon request. Copies of this part
shall be posted and made available in a language understood by the
sheepherder. An employer is deemed to have complied with this
subdivision if he or she posts where practical, or makes available
upon request where posting is impractical, a copy of the Industrial
Welfare Commission Order 14-2001, as adopted on April 14, 2001,
relating to sheepherders, provided that the posted material includes
a sufficient summary of each of the provisions of this part.