AB 1309, as introduced, Perea. Workers’ compensation: professional athletes.
Existing workers’ compensation law requires employers to secure the payment of workers’ compensation, including medical treatment, for injuries incurred by their employees that arise out of, or in the course of, employment.
Existing law provides that an injury may be either “specific,” occurring as the result of one incident or exposure that causes disability or need for medical treatment, or “cumulative,” occurring as repetitive mentally or physically traumatic activities extending over a period of time, the combined effect of which causes any disability or need for medical treatment. Existing law provides that the date of injury in cases of occupational diseases or cumulative injuries is that date upon which the employee first suffered disability therefrom and either knew, or in the exercise of reasonable diligence should have known, that the disability was caused by his or her present or prior employment.
Existing law provides that an employee who has been hired outside of this state and his or her employer are exempt from these provisions while the employee is temporarily within this state doing work for his or her employer if the employer has furnished workers’ compensation insurance coverage under the workers’ compensation insurance or similar laws of a state other than California, as specified.
This bill would provide that an employee hired outside of this state, his or her dependents, and his or her employer shall be exempt from this state’s workers’ compensation laws if the employee is a professional athlete, defined, for purposes of these provisions, to include an athlete who is employed at the minor or major league level in the sport of baseball, basketball, football, hockey, or soccer, and that professional athlete is temporarily within this state doing work for his or her employer. This bill would deem a professional athlete to be temporarily within the state doing work for his or her employer if, during the 365 days immediately preceding either the professional athlete’s date of injury, or, in the case of an occupational disease or cumulative injury claim, the professional athlete’s last date of injurious exposure while employed anywhere as a professional athlete, the professional athlete performs less than 90 total days of required services within the state under the direction and control of the employer. The bill would provide that if the employee is a professional athlete, the date of injury in cases of occupational diseases or cumulative injuries is the date of the employee’s last injurious exposure while employed anywhere as a professional athlete, or the date of diagnosis, as defined, by a licensed physician, whichever occurs later.
The bill would also provide that an employer of a professional athlete that is subject to California’s workers’ compensation laws is not liable for occupational disease or cumulative injury if at the time application for benefits is made the professional athlete performed his or her last year of work in an occupation that exposed him or her to the occupational disease or cumulative injury as an employee of one or more other employers that are exempt from California’s workers’ compensation laws or pursuant to the above provisions or any other law. The bill would provide that these changes apply to all pending claims for benefits, as specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 3600.5 of the Labor Code is amended to
2read:
(a) If an employee who has been hired or is regularly
2employed in the state receives personal injury by accident arising
3out of and in the course ofbegin delete suchend delete employment outside of this state,
4hebegin insert or sheend insert, or hisbegin insert or herend insert dependents, in the case of hisbegin insert or herend insert death,
5shall be entitled to compensation according to the law of this state.
6(b) begin deleteAny end deletebegin insert(1)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertExcept as provided in subdivision (c), an end insertemployee
7who has been hired outside of this state and hisbegin insert or herend insert employer
8shall be exempted from the provisions of this division whilebegin delete suchend delete
9begin insert theend insert employee is temporarily within this state doing work for his
10begin insert or herend insert employer ifbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert
theend insert employer has furnishedbegin delete workmen’send delete
11begin insert workers’end insert compensation insurance coverage under thebegin delete workmen’send delete
12begin insert workers’end insert compensation insurance or similar laws of a state other
13than California, so as to coverbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert employee’s employment
14while in thisbegin delete state; provided, theend deletebegin insert
state if both of the following apply:end insert
15begin insert(A)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertThe end insertextraterritorial provisions of this division are recognized
16inbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert other statebegin delete and providedend deletebegin insert.end insert
17begin insert(B)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertThe end insertemployers and employees who are covered in this state
18are likewise exempted from the application of thebegin delete workmen’send delete
19begin insert
workersend insertbegin insert’end insert compensation insurance or similar laws ofbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert other
20state.begin delete Theend delete
21begin insert(2)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertIn any case in which paragraph (1) is applicable, the end insertbenefits
22under thebegin delete Workmen’s Compensation Insurance Actend deletebegin insert workers’
23compensation insuranceend insert or similar
laws ofbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert
theend insert other state,begin delete orend delete
24begin insert andend insert other remedies underbegin delete such act or suchend deletebegin insert
thoseend insert laws, shall be the
25exclusive remedy againstbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert employer for any injury, whether
26resulting in death or not, received bybegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert employee while
27working forbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert employer in this state.
28(c) (1) Any professional athlete who
has been hired outside of
29this state and his or her dependents and his or her employer shall
30be exempted from the provisions of this division while the
31professional athlete is temporarily within this state doing work
32for his or her employer if both of the following apply:
33(A) The employer has furnished workers’ compensation
34insurance coverage or its equivalent under the laws of a state other
35than California.
36(B) The employer’s workers’ compensation insurance or its
37equivalent covers the professional athlete’s employment while in
38this state.
39(2) If the conditions described in paragraph (1) are satisfied,
40then the benefits under the laws of the other state, and other
P4 1remedies under those laws, shall be the exclusive benefits and
2remedies against the employer for any injury, whether resulting
3in death or not, received by the employee while working for the
4employer in this state.
5(3) A professional athlete shall be deemed, for purposes of this
6subdivision, to be temporarily within this state doing work for his
7or her employer if, during the 365 days immediately preceding
8either the professional athlete’s date of injury, or, in the case of
9occupational disease or cumulative injury claims, the professional
10athlete’s last date of injurious exposure while employed anywhere
11as a professional athlete, the professional athlete
performs less
12than 90 total days of required services within the state under the
13direction and control of the employer.
14(4) An employer of a professional athlete that is subject to this
15division is not liable for occupational disease or cumulative injury
16pursuant to Section 5500.5 if at the time application for benefits
17is made the professional athlete performed his or her last year of
18work in an occupation that exposed him or her to the occupational
19disease or cumulative injury as an employee of one or more other
20employers that are exempt from this division pursuant to paragraph
21(1) or any other law.
22(5) The term “professional athlete” for purposes of this
23subdivision means an athlete who is employed at either a minor
24or major league level in the sport of baseball, basketball, football,
25hockey, or soccer.
26(6) The amendments made to this section by the act adding this
27paragraph apply to all pending claims for benefits pursuant to
28this division that have not yet been adjudicated.
29A
end delete
30begin insert(d)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertFor purposes of this section, a end insertcertificate from the duly
31authorized officer of the appeals board or similar department of
32another state certifying that the employer ofbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert
theend insert other state
33is insuredbegin delete thereinend deletebegin insert
in that stateend insert and has provided extraterritorial
34coverage insuring hisbegin insert or herend insert employees while working within this
35state shall be prima facie evidence thatbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert employer carries
36begin delete such workmen’send deletebegin insert workersend insertbegin insert’end insert compensation insurance.
Section 5412 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
begin insert(a)end insertbegin insert end insert The date of injury in cases of occupational diseases
39or cumulative injuries is that date upon which the employee first
40suffered disability therefrom and either knew, or in the exercise
P5 1of reasonable diligence should have known, thatbegin delete suchend deletebegin insert theend insert disability
2was caused by hisbegin insert or herend insert
present or prior employment.
3(b) In the event the employee is a professional athlete:
end insertbegin insert
4(1) The date of injury in cases of occupational disease or
5cumulative injuries is the date of the employee’s last injurious
6exposure while employed anywhere as a professional athlete, or
7the date of diagnosis by a licensed physician, whichever occurs
8later.
9(2) The date of diagnosis by a licensed physician is that date
10on which the licensed physician informed the professional athlete
11of his or her medical diagnosis.
12(3) The time limitation in subdivision (a) of Section 5405 may
13be tolled only by reason of the employee’s mental incompetence
14during the time permitted to commence proceedings pursuant to
15subdivision (a) of Section 5405.
16(4) The term “professional athlete” as
used in this subdivision
17shall have the same meaning as set forth in paragraph (5) of
18subdivision (c) of Section 3600.5.
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