BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Ted W. Lieu, Chair
Date of Hearing: May 11, 2011 20011-2012 Regular
Session
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Fiscal: No
Urgency: No
Bill No: SB 272
Author: DeSaulnier
Version: As Amended April 26, 2011
SUBJECT
Leave of absence: organ donation.
KEY ISSUE
Should the Legislative clarify the existing organ and bone
marrow donation law to assist businesses in compliance?
PURPOSE
To clarify the Michelle Maykin Memorial Donation Protection Act
to assist employer compliance.
ANALYSIS
Existing federal and state laws, known as the federal Family
Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act
(CFRA), require all employers with 50 or more employees within a
75 mile radius to grant 12 weeks of unpaid family leave in a
12-month period to any employee who is eligible. This leave can
be taken by an employee for the purposes of child birth, care of
a newly adopted child or newly placed foster child, and serious
health conditions for the employee, the employee's spouse or
registered domestic partner, or for the employee's parent. With
certain exceptions, the employee taking the leave must be
reinstated.
Existing law requires that employees of the state who have
exhausted all available sick leave be allowed to take a leave of
absence with pay, not exceeding 30 days for the purpose of organ
donation and not exceeding 5 days for bone marrow donation.
Existing law also requires any business entity that employs 15
or more employees to provide up to 30 days of paid leave for an
organ donation and up to 5 days of paid leave for a bone marrow
donation.
Existing law also prohibits a private employer from interfering
with an employee taking organ or bone marrow donation and from
retaliating against an employee for taking such leave or
opposing an unlawful employment practice related to organ or
bone marrow donation leave.
This bill makes the following clarifying changes:
i. That leave for an organ donation must not exceed 30
business days in a year, and that the one-year period is
measured from the date the employee's leave begins and
consists of 12 consecutive months ;
ii. Any period of time during which an employee is required
to be absent from his or her position by reason due to
organ or bone marrow leave is not break in his or her
continuous service for the purpose of his or her right to
paid time off , and that health coverage continues in the
same manner the coverage would have been maintained if the
employee had been actively at work;
iii. Includes paid time off as leave that an employer can
require be used for bone marrow and organ tissue donation;
iv. Recites the California Family Rights Act; and
v. Leave provided for pursuant to this section may be taken
in one or more periods, but in no event shall exceed the
amount of leave prescribed in the law .
This bill would also declare the above amendments to existing
law are declaratory of existing law.
COMMENTS
Hearing Date: May 11, 2011 SB 272
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Page 2
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
1. Need for this bill?
Last year, the Legislature passed, and Governor Schwarzenegger
signed, SB 1304 (DeSaulnier), Statutes of 2010, Chapter 646,
also known as the Michelle Maykin Memorial Donation Protection
Act. This Act provided protected leave for employees who
donated bone marrow or organ tissue, and was named after the
daughter of one of Senator DeSaulnier's constituents who died
of leukemia in 2009.
Since the passage of SB 1304, the California Chamber of
Commerce and other stakeholders have noted areas where, while
the law's intent may be clear, additional clarification would
provide certainty for businesses seeking to comply with the
law. SB 272 is the product of those discussions and seeks to
clarify the Legislature's original intent with SB 1304 and
existing law.
2. Proponent Arguments :
The sponsor of the measure, the California Chamber of
Commerce, believes that this bill will clarify existing law to
aid employers in the proper implementation of the Michelle
Maykin Memorial Donation Protection Act. The Chamber notes
that there was some ambiguity in the terms utilized in the
Act, which required certain amendments. Specifically, the
Chamber notes the confirmation of the time period for leave as
business days, the clarification that health insurance must be
continued at the same level prior to the leave, and the
clarification that a paid time off program can be utilized in
the same manner as a sick leave or vacation leave policy.
With these amendments, the Chamber believes that SB 272 will
provide the clarification and certainty employers need to
comply with the law, which will benefit both employer and
employee alike.
3. Prior Legislation :
Hearing Date: May 11, 2011 SB 272
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Page 3
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
SB 1304 (DeSaulnier), Statutes of 2010, Chapter 646, was
discussed above.
SUPPORT
California Chamber of Commerce (Sponsor)
California Nurses Association
National Nurses Organizing Committee
OPPOSITION
None on file.
Hearing Date: May 11, 2011 SB 272
Consultant: Gideon L. Baum Page 4
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations