Amended in Assembly June 1, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1354


Introduced by Assembly Member Dodd

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Bonilla, Bonta, Chávez, Eggman, Gonzalez, and Lopez)

(Coauthors: Senators Galgiani, Hancock, Leyva, Mitchell, and Wolk)

February 27, 2015


An act to amend Section 12990 of the Government Code, relating to discrimination.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1354, as amended, Dodd. Discrimination: equal pay: state contracting.

Existing law subjects an employer who is, or wishes to become, a contractor with the state for public works, or for goods or services, to various nondiscrimination requirements. Existing law authorizes requiring an employer to submit a nondiscrimination program to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing for approval and certification, prior to becoming a contractor or subcontractor with the state, as well as requiring the provision of periodic reports of contractor or subcontractor compliance with that program.

This bill would enact the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act of 2015. The bill would require an employer with 100 or more employees, prior to becoming a contractor or subcontractor with the state, to submitbegin delete an income equalityend deletebegin insert a nondiscriminationend insert program to the Department of Fair Employment and Housingbegin delete for approval and certificationend delete and to submit periodic reports of its compliance with that program.begin insert The bill would authorize the department to require approval and certification of the program and permit the department to audit programs for compliance. The bill would permit the department to require an employer with fewer than 100 employees to submit a nondiscrimination report.end insert The bill would require thebegin delete income equalityend deletebegin insert nondiscriminationend insert program to includebegin delete the collection of summary data on the compensation paid to employees, including data sorted by gender and race, and policies designed to ensure income equality and prevent unlawful discrimination.end deletebegin insert policies and procedures designed to ensure equal employment opportunities for all applicants and employees, an analysis of employment selection procedures, and a work force analysis, as specified.end insert The bill would make a statement of legislative findings.

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

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

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
2Equal Pay for Equal Work Act of 2015.

3

SEC. 2.  

(a) The Legislature finds and declares the following:

4(1) According to data from the United States Census Bureau,
5full-time working women, on average, over the last decade, have
6continued to earn just 77 cents for every dollar a man earns. The
7wage gap is greater for women of color, with African American
8women being paid an average of 64 cents for every dollar paid to
9white, non-Hispanic men in 2013 and Latinas being paid just 56
10cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.

11(2) This wage disparity amounted to a yearly average wage gap
12of $10,876 in 2013 between full-time working men and full-time
13working women. In total, the disparity represents more than $490
14billion in lost wages for working women every year.

15(3) Disparities in pay for women have numerous negative
16impacts. This pay differential shortchanges women and their
17families by thousands of dollars a year and potentially hundreds
18of thousands of dollars over a lifetime. Nearly 4 in 10 mothers are
19primary breadwinners in their households, and nearly two-thirds
20are significant earners, making pay equity critical to the economic
21security of their families.

22(4) Equal pay for equal work is a fundamental precept in our
23nation and in California. Federal law, including the federal Equal
24Pay Act of 1963 (Public Law 88-38), Title VII of the Civil Rights
P3    1Act of 1964 (Public Lawbegin delete 88-352),end deletebegin insert 88-352),end insert and Executive Order
211246 of September 24, 1965, entitled Equal Employment
3Opportunity, specifically prohibits arbitrarily compensating men
4and women differently for the same work, as does California’s
5Equal Pay Act.

6(5) On August 6, 2014, the United States Department of Labor’s
7Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs issued a notice
8of proposed rulemaking to required covered federal contractors
9and subcontractors with more than 100 employees to submit an
10annual equal pay report on employee compensation. In California,
11state contractors receiving public money are obligated to comply
12with equal pay laws and should provide the state with aggregate
13wage data to advance pay equity.

14(b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this act to
15promote pay equity and nondiscrimination in setting pay and
16making hiring or promotional decisions, and to obtain better data
17onbegin delete income inequalityend deletebegin insert pay equityend insert to more wholly address the
18problem.

19

SEC. 3.  

Section 12990 of the Government Code is amended
20to read:

21

12990.  

(a) Any employer who is, or wishes to become, a
22contractor with the state for public works or for goods or services
23is subject to the provisions of this part relating to discrimination
24in employment and to the nondiscrimination requirements of this
25section and any rules and regulations that implement it.

26(b) (1) Prior to becoming a contractor or subcontractor with
27the state, an employerbegin delete may be required toend deletebegin insert with 100 or more
28employees shallend insert
submit a nondiscrimination program to the
29departmentbegin delete for approval and certification and may be required toend delete
30begin insert and shallend insert submit periodic reports of its compliance with that
31program.begin insert An employer with fewer than 100 employees may be
32required to submit a nondiscrimination program, and if so required
33shall comply with the requirements for employers with 100 or more
34employees. The department may require approval and certification
35of a nondiscrimination program and may audit programs for
36compliance.end insert

begin delete

37(2) Prior to becoming a contractor or subcontractor with the
38state, an employer with 100 or more employees shall submit an
39income equality program to the department for approval and
40certification and shall be required to submit periodic reports of its
P4    1compliance with that program. The income equality program shall
2include the collection of summary data on the compensation paid
3to employees, including data sorted by gender and race, and include
4policies designed to ensure income equality and prevent unlawful
5discrimination.

end delete
begin insert

6(2) A nondiscrimination program shall include policies and
7procedures designed to ensure equal employment opportunities
8for all applicants and employees, an analysis of employment
9selection procedures, and a work force analysis. The work force
10analysis shall include the following:

end insert
begin insert

11(A) An equal pay report that includes the total number of
12workers with a specific job category identified by worker race,
13ethnicity, and gender.

end insert
begin insert

14(B) Total wages required to be reported on Internal Revenue
15Service Form W-2 for all workers in a specific job category
16identified by worker race, ethnicity, and gender.

end insert
begin insert

17(C) The total hours worked for all workers in a specific job
18category identified by worker race, ethnicity, and gender.

end insert

19(c) Every state contract and subcontract for public works or for
20goods or services shall contain a nondiscrimination clause
21prohibiting discrimination on the bases enumerated in this part by
22contractors or subcontractors. The nondiscrimination clause shall
23contain a provision requiring contractors and subcontractors to
24give written notice of their obligations under that clause to labor
25organizations with which they have a collective bargaining or other
26agreement. These contractual provisions shall be fully and
27effectively enforced. This subdivision does not apply to a credit
28card purchase of goods of two thousand five hundred dollars
29($2,500) or less. The total amount of exemption authorized herein
30shall not exceed seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500) per
31year for each company from which a state agency is purchasing
32goods by credit card. It shall be the responsibility of each state
33agency to monitor the use of this exemption and adhere to these
34restrictions on these purchases.

35(d) The department shall periodically develop rules and
36regulations for the application and implementation of this section,
37and submit them to the council for consideration and adoption in
38accordance with the provisions of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with
39Section 11340) of Part 1. Those rules and regulations shall describe
40and include, but not be limited to, all of the following:

P5    1(1) Procedures for the investigation, approval, certification,
2decertification, monitoring, and enforcement of nondiscrimination
3programs.

4(2) The size of contracts or subcontracts below which any
5particular provision of this section shall not apply.

6(3) The circumstances, if any, under which a contractor or
7subcontractor is not subject to this section.

8(4) Criteria for determining the appropriate plant, region,
9division, or other unit of a contractor’s or subcontractor’s operation
10for which a nondiscrimination program is required.

11(5) Procedures for coordinating the nondiscrimination
12requirements of this section and its implementing rules and
13regulations with the California Plan for Equal Opportunity in
14Apprenticeship, with the provisions and implementing regulations
15of Article 9.5 (commencing with Section 11135) of Chapter 1 of
16Part 1, and with comparable federal laws and regulations
17concerning nondiscrimination, equal employment opportunity,
18and affirmative action by those who contract with the United States.

19(6) The basic principles and standards to guide the department
20in administering and implementing this section.

21(e) Where a contractor or subcontractor is required to prepare
22an affirmative action, equal employment, or nondiscrimination
23program subject to review and approval by a federal compliance
24agency, that program may be filed with the department, instead of
25any nondiscrimination program regularly required by this section
26or its implementing rules and regulations. Such a program shall
27constitute a prima facie demonstration of compliance with this
28section. Where the department or a federal compliance agency has
29required the preparation of an affirmative action, equal
30employment, or nondiscrimination program subject to review and
31approval by the department or a federal compliance agency,
32evidence of such a program shall also constitute prima facie
33compliance with an ordinance or regulation of any city, city and
34county, or county that requires an employer to submit such a
35program to a local awarding agency for its approval prior to
36becoming a contractor or subcontractor with that agency.

37(f) Where the department determines and certifies that the
38provisions of this section or its implementing rules and regulations
39are violated or determines a contractor or subcontractor is engaging
40in practices made unlawful under this part, the department may
P6    1recommend appropriate sanctions to the awarding agency. Any
2such recommendation shall take into account the severity of the
3violation or violations and any other penalties, sanctions, or
4remedies previously imposed.



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