BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 1230
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   June 23, 2010

                     ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
                                Sandre Swanson, Chair
                  SB 1230 (DeSaulnier) - As Amended:  April 21, 2010

           SENATE VOTE  :   23-7
           
          SUBJECT  :   Employment: posting requirements.

           SUMMARY  :   Requires employers to post, as soon as practicable,  
          information related to slavery and human trafficking, including  
          the toll-free hotline of the National Human Trafficking Resource  
          Center (NHTRC), in a conspicuous location frequented by  
          employees.   Additionally, requires the Labor Commissioner (LC)  
          to determine which languages the notice shall be printed in and  
          for the LC to enforce these provisions.

           EXISTING FEDERAL LAW  establishes the Victims of Trafficking and  
          Violence Protection Act of 2000, which was enacted to combat  
          trafficking in persons, a contemporary manifestation of slavery  
          whose victims are predominantly women and children, to ensure  
          just and effective punishment of traffickers, and to protect  
          their victims and delineates various federal actions to combat  
          trafficking, punish perpetrators, and offers protections and  
          services for persons in the country illegally who may be victims  
          of human trafficking. 
           
          EXISTING STATE LAW  :

          1)Requires employers to post various state and federal safety  
            and labor law notices, orders and regulations in a conspicuous  
            place frequented by their employees.

          2)Requires employers to provide specified posters in various  
            languages. Failure to comply with workplace posting  
            requirements is a misdemeanor and may be punishable by a fine,  
            imprisonment, or both.  Each employer is required to take  
            necessary steps to insure that notices are not altered,  
            defaced or covered up.

          3)Makes human trafficking a crime and allows a victim of human  
            trafficking to bring a civil action for actual damages,  
            compensatory damages, punitive damages, injunctive relief, any  
            combination of those, or any other appropriate relief.








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          FISCAL EFFECT  :   According to the Senate Appropriations  
          Committee, minor absorbable costs and unknown costs related to  
          enforcement.

           COMMENTS  :   According to the author, human trafficking - a crime  
          that often hides in the shadows - is an unfortunate widespread  
          form of modern day slavery that affects thousands of foreign and  
          domestic men, women and children in the United States.   
          Detecting human trafficking is difficult since it thrives on  
          secrecy and on the social and physical isolation of its victims.  


          According to the U.S. Department of State, there is a wide range  
          of estimates that exist on the scope and magnitude of modern day  
          slavery.  The International Labor Organization (ILO), which is  
          the United Nations Agency charged with addressing labor  
          standards, employment, and social protection issues, estimates  
          that there are at least 12.3 million adults and children in  
          forced labor, bonded labor, and commercial sexual servitude at  
          any given time.  Of these victims, the ILO estimates that 56  
          percent are women and girls.

          The United States government, state agencies and various  
          non-governmental organizations throughout the U.S. are committed  
          to preventing trafficking, protecting victims of trafficking and  
          prosecuting traffickers.  While federal and state law  
          enforcement works to investigate the criminal networks involved  
          in human trafficking, local and state police and various  
          community members are most often in the best position to  
          recognize and report possible instances of human trafficking.   
          The human trafficking hotlines used to assist victims are the  
          most centralized outlet to process and respond to calls for  
          help.

          For victims, the public posting of the hotline is critical since  
          they generally do not have access to the internet or to other  
          forms of outreach and awareness programs.  For community  
          members, a call to the hotline to request general information  
          may generate future tips and a better understanding of the red  
          flags of human trafficking.  Lastly, the hotlines provide a  
          consistent nation means of tracking the number and types of call  
          from particular cities and states for a greater understanding of  
          where the crimes are occurring.  High visibility and awareness  
          of the human trafficking hotline increases the chances that  








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          potential human trafficking will be reported and that human  
          traffickers will be stopped.

          Similar efforts to require the posting of human trafficking and  
          hotline information have been enacted in other states in recent  
          years.  In 2007, the Texas Legislature enacted laws that  
          resulted in the mandatory posting of the National Human  
          Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) hotline.  According to the  
          NHTRC, the hotline has consistently received more calls from  
          Texas than any other state.  The NHTRC has referred the high  
          volume of tips to local entities in Texas resulting in increased  
          services to victims.  Several states, including Oregon,  
          Maryland, Washington and others, are considering similar efforts  
          to help combat human trafficking.  

           Arguments in Support  :

          According to the supporters of this bill, the problem of human  
          trafficking is a much larger and more global issue than most  
          people grasp.  According to the U.S. Department of Health and  
          Human Services, after drug trafficking, human trafficking is  
          tied with the illegal arms industry as the second largest  
          criminal industry in the world today, and it is also the fastest  
          growing.  Also, according to supporters, experience in the field  
          has demonstrated that one of the best tools to combat human  
          trafficking is raising public awareness of the problem.   
          Supporters believe that this bill not only provides an  
          opportunity for many people to become aware of the issue through  
          employer signage, but provides a tool for action by providing  
          specific information about the hotline.  

          Additionally, they also argue that in this global economy, the  
          race to the bottom is visible as free trade policies have  
          allowed corporations to jump from country to country in search  
          of the cheapest labor and the fewest regulations.  Supporters  
          argue that products are produced throughout the globe using  
          forced labor, child labor, indentured servitude, and other  
          abusive conditions.  Even right here in California, supporters  
          assert, the underground economy thrives on wage theft, many  
          domestic workers are the victims of trafficking, and that many  
          workplaces are sweatshops operating without the most basic  
          worker protections.  
          Lastly, they argue that while the state of California cannot  
          always eradicate such labor conditions, it should provide  
          information to workers of their rights and protections afforded  








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          them under the law in regard to human trafficking.  

           Prior Legislation  :

          AB 22 (Lieber) Chapter 240, Statues of 2005, enacted the  
          California Trafficking Victims Protection Act which established  
          civil and criminal penalties for human trafficking and allowed  
          for forfeiture of assets derived from human trafficking. 

          SB 180 (Kuehl) Chapter 239, Statutes of 2005, established the  
          California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery  
          (California ACTS) Task Force charged with conducting a thorough  
          review of California's response to human trafficking and to  
          report its finding to the Governor, Attorney General, and the  
          Legislature.
           
           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :

           Support 
           
          Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition 
          California Catholic Conference, Inc.
          California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO 
          Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking 
          Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
          Lt. Derek Marsh, Westminister Police Department
          Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force
          Peace Officers Research Association of California
          Polaris Project
          
            Opposition 
           
          None on file.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Lorie Erickson / L. & E. / (916)  
          319-2091