BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 226 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 8, 2013 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, RETIREMENT AND SOCIAL SECURITY Rob Bonta, Chair AB 226 (Atkins) - As Amended: April 24, 2013 SUBJECT : Classified employees: workweek. SUMMARY : Authorizes the governing board of a school district or county superintendent to establish a 12-hour-per-day, 80-hour-per-2-week work schedule for school police departments if agreed to in a collective bargaining agreement, as specified. Specifically, this bill : 1)Authorizes the establishment of a 12-hour per day, 80-hour-per-2-week work schedule for school police departments provided that the establishment of the schedule is agreed to in a valid collective bargaining agreement that contains all of the following: a) Express provisions for the wages, hours, and working conditions. b) Express provisions for meal periods and final and binding arbitration of disputes involving the meal period provisions. c) Premium wage rates for all overtime worked. d) A regular rate of pay that is at least 30% above the state minimum wage. 2)Specifies that when the new work schedule is adopted, it will consist of seven work days - six that are 12-hour-days and one that is an 8-hour-day. Time and a half will be paid for overtime hours worked in excess of the required workday. 3)Requires the workweek to be defined so that no employee will be required to work more than 40 hours in a workweek. EXISTING FEDERAL LAW : 1)Establishes, under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor AB 226 Page 2 standards affecting full-time and part-time workers in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local governments. 2)Requires, generally, that most employees be paid overtime pay at time and one-half the regular rate of pay for all hours worked over 40 hours in a workweek. 3)Defines a workweek as a period of 168 hours during seven consecutive 24-hour periods. A workweek may begin on any day of the week and at any hour of the day established by the employer. EXISTING STATE LAW : 1)Requires that the workweek of a classified employee shall be 40 hours and the workday shall be eight hours. These provisions do not restrict the extension of a regular workday or workweek on an overtime basis when such is necessary to carry on the business of the school district. The governing board of a school district may establish a workday of less than eight hours or a workweek of less than 40 hours for all or any of its classified positions. 2)Specifies that the workweek of a classified employee assigned an average workday of four or more hours shall consist of not more than five consecutive days. 3)Authorizes the governing board of a school district to establish alternate work schedules for all, or certain classes of its employees or for employees within a class when, by reason of the work location and duties actually performed by such employees, their services are not required for a workweek of five consecutive days, provided the establishment of such a workweek has the concurrence of the concerned employee, class of employees, or classes of employees as ascertained through the employee organization representing a majority of the concerned employees or class or classes of employees. 4)Defines overtime to include any time required to be worked in excess of eight hours of paid service in any one day or in excess of 40 hours of paid service in any calendar week. AB 226 Page 3 5)Requires that a classified employee who works authorized overtime be compensated at a rate at least equal to time and one-half of his/her regular rate of pay. 6)Mandates overtime compensation after 8 hours of work for classified school employees. FISCAL EFFECT : This bill is keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel. COMMENTS : According to the author, "Some school districts have school police departments that work 24 hours a day. The San Diego Schools Police Officers Association reports difficulty meeting staffing requirements for its dispatching department without incurring significant overtime. Twelve hour shifts will be a valuable tool to ensure the availability of school police officer dispatchers when staffing is short due to hiring freezes, illness, or other unforeseen circumstances. Additionally, many employees may find it more convenient to work on a 3/12 schedule due to the benefit of having 4 days off per week." The author concludes, "The San Diego Unified School District has endured six straight years of budget cuts and employees have suffered hundreds of layoffs. By passing AB 226 we can provide school districts with school police dispatch departments an important tool to realize staff savings while giving employees the flexibility to choose which work schedule is right for them." The Committee is informed that the State Board of Education can approve a waiver of the overtime provisions if they are mutually agreed to by the school district and the affected employee organization. The process for obtaining a waiver is cumbersome and requires written public notice at every school site and district owned facility; a press release, local school board approval and staff travel to Sacramento to advocate for state board approval. In 2005 the San Diego Unified School District and the San Diego Schools Police Officer's Association obtained a waiver to allow school police officer dispatchers to work on a 3/12 schedule. The schedule worked well for the employees and for the school district, and now both support codifying the practice. AB 226 Page 4 REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION : Support San Diego Schools Police Officer Association (Sponsor) Peace Officers Research Association of California San Bernardino School Police Officer's Association San Diego Unified School District Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by : Karon Green / P.E., R. & S.S. / (916) 319-3957