Amended in Assembly March 26, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 305

Introduced by Assembly Member Gonzalez

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Chiu and McCarty)

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February 12, 2015

An act to amend Section begin delete 1174 end delete begin insert 4663 end insert of the Labor Code, relating to employment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 305, as amended, Gonzalez. begin delete Employers: payroll records. end delete begin insert Workers’ compensation: permanent disability apportionment. end insert

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Existing workers’ compensation law generally requires employers to secure payment of workers’ compensation, including medical treatment, for injuries incurred by their employees that arise out of, or in the course of, employment. An employer is liable only for the percentage of the permanent disability directly caused by the injury arising out of, and occurring in the course of, employment.

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Existing law requires apportionment of permanent disability to be based on causation, and a physician who prepares a report addressing the issue of permanent disability due to a claimed industrial injury is required to address the issue of causation of the permanent disability. The physician is required to make an apportionment determination by finding what approximate percentage of the permanent disability was caused by the direct result of injury arising out of and occurring in the course of employment, and what approximate percentage of the permanent disability was caused by other factors both before and subsequent to the industrial injury, including prior industrial injuries.

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This bill would prohibit apportionment of permanent disability, in cases of physical injury, from being based on pregnancy, breast cancer, menopause, or osteoporosis. The bill would also prohibit apportionment of permanent disability, in cases of psychiatric injury, from being based on psychiatric disability or impairment caused by sexual harassment, pregnancy, breast cancer, menopause, or osteoporosis.

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Existing law requires an employer to furnish to the Industrial Welfare Commission, upon request, reports or information regarding the wages, hours, and other information that the employer is required by law to keep regarding his or her employees. A violation of this provision is a crime.

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This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to this provision.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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begin insert Section 4663 of the end insert begin insert Labor Code end insert begin insert is amended to
read: end insert

4663.  

(a) Apportionment of permanent disability shall be based
on causation.

(b) Any physician who prepares a report addressing the issue
of permanent disability due to a claimed industrial injury shall in
that report address the issue of causation of the permanent
disability.

(c)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert In order for a physician’s report to be considered
complete on the issue of permanent disability, the report must
include an apportionment determination. begin delete A end delete

begin insert (A) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert A end insert physician shall make an apportionment determination by
finding what approximate percentage of the permanent disability
was caused by the direct result of injury arising out of and
occurring in the course of employment and what approximate
percentage of the permanent disability was caused by other factors
both before and subsequent to the industrial injury, including prior
industrial injuries. begin delete If end delete

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(B) Apportionment in cases of physical injury shall not be based
on any of the following conditions:

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(i) Pregnancy.

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(ii) Breast cancer.

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(iii) Menopause.

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(iv) Osteoporosis.

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(C) Apportionment in cases of psychiatric injury shall not be
based on psychiatric disability or impairment caused by sexual
harassment or caused by any of the conditions listed in
subparagraph (B).

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begin insert (3) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert If end insert the physician is unable to include an apportionment
determination in his or her report, the physician shall state the
specific reasons why the physician could not make a determination
of the effect of begin delete that end delete begin insert a end insert prior condition on the permanent disability
arising from the injury. The physician shall then consult with other
physicians or refer the employee to another physician from whom
the employee is authorized to seek treatment or evaluation in
accordance with this division in order to make the final
determination.

(d) An employee who claims an industrial injury shall, upon
request, disclose all previous permanent disabilities or physical
impairments.

(e) Subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) shall not apply to injuries or
illnesses covered under Sections 3212, 3212.1, 3212.2, 3212.3,
3212.4, 3212.5, 3212.6, 3212.7, 3212.8, 3212.85, 3212.9, 3212.10,
3212.11, 3212.12, 3213, and 3213.2.

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SECTION 1.  

Section 1174 of the Labor Code is amended to
read:

1174.  

Any person employing labor in this state shall:

(a) Furnish to the commission, at its request, reports or
information that the commission requires to carry out this chapter.
The reports and information shall be verified if required by the
commission or any member thereof.

(b) Allow any member of the commission or the employees of
the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement free access to the
place of business or employment of the person to secure any
information or make any investigation that they are authorized by
this chapter to ascertain or make. The commission may inspect or
make excerpts, relating to the employment of employees, from the
books, reports, contracts, payrolls, documents, or papers of the
person.

(c) Keep a record showing the names and addresses of all
employees employed and the ages of all minors.

(d) Keep, at a central location in the state or at the plants or
establishments at which employees are employed, payroll records
showing the hours worked daily by and the wages paid to, and the
number of piece-rate units earned by and any applicable piece rate
paid to, employees employed at the respective plants or
establishments. These records shall be kept in accordance with
rules established for this purpose by the commission, but in any
case shall be kept on file for not less than three years. An employer
shall not prohibit an employee from maintaining a personal record
of hours worked, or, if paid on a piece-rate basis, piece-rate units
earned.

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