Amended in Assembly March 26, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1451

Introduced by Assembly Member Chávez

February 27, 2015

An act to amend Section begin delete 3200 end delete begin insert 4850 end insert of the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1451, as amended, Chávez. Workers’ begin delete compensation. end delete begin insert compensation: public employees. end insert

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Existing law provides that certain peace officers, firefighters, and other specified local public employees are entitled to a leave of absence without loss of salary while disabled by injury or illness arising out of and in the course of employment. The leave of absence is in lieu of temporary disability payments or maintenance allowance payments otherwise payable under the workers’ compensation system.

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This bill would extend this leave of absence entitlement to lifeguards employed year round on a regular, full-time basis by the City of Oceanside.

end insert begin insert

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for these employees of the City of Oceanside.

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Existing law establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, to compensate an employee for injuries sustained in the course of his or her employment, and provides that it is the intent of the Legislature that any use of the obsolete term “workmen’s compensation” be replaced in the law with the term “workers’ compensation.”

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This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to the above 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 4850 of the end insert begin insert Labor Code end insert begin insert is amended to
read: end insert

4850.  

(a) Whenever any person listed in subdivision (b), who
is employed on a regular, full-time basis, and is disabled, whether
temporarily or permanently, by injury or illness arising out begin delete of end delete begin insert of, end insert
and in the course begin delete of end delete begin insert of, end insert his or her duties, he or she shall become
entitled, regardless of his or her period of service with the city,
county, or district, to a leave of absence while so disabled without
loss of salary in lieu of temporary disability payments or
maintenance allowance payments, if any, that would be payable
under this chapter, for the period of the disability, but not exceeding
one year, or until that earlier date as he or she is retired on
permanent disability pension, and is actually receiving disability
pension payments, or advanced disability pension payments
pursuant to Section 4850.3.

(b) The persons eligible under subdivision (a) include all of the
following:

(1) City police officers.

(2) City, county, or district firefighters.

(3) Sheriffs.

(4) Officers or employees of any sheriff’s offices.

(5) Inspectors, investigators, detectives, or personnel with
comparable titles in any district attorney’s office.

(6) County probation officers, group counselors, or juvenile
services officers.

(7) Officers or employees of a probation office.

(8) Peace officers under Section 830.31 of the Penal Code
employed on a regular, full-time basis by a county of the first class.

(9) Lifeguards employed year round on a regular, full-time basis
by a county of the first begin delete class end delete begin delete or end delete begin insert class, end insert by the City of begin delete San Diego. end delete
begin insert San Diego, or by the City of Oceanside. end insert

(10) Airport law enforcement officers under subdivision (d) of
Section 830.33 of the Penal Code.

(11) Harbor or port police officers, wardens, or special officers
of a harbor or port district or city or county harbor department
under subdivision (a) of Section 830.1 or subdivision (b) of Section
830.33 of the Penal Code.

(12) Police officers of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

(c) This section shall apply only to persons listed in subdivision
(b) who meet the requirements of subdivision (a), and shall not
include any of the following:

(1) Employees of a police department whose principal duties
are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer, machinist,
mechanic, or otherwise, and whose functions do not clearly fall
within the scope of active law enforcement service.

(2) Employees of a county sheriff’s office whose principal duties
are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer, machinist,
mechanic, or otherwise, and whose functions do not clearly come
within the scope of active law enforcement service.

(3) Employees of a county probation office whose principal
duties are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer,
machinist, mechanic, or otherwise, and whose functions do not
clearly come within the scope of active law enforcement service.

(4) Employees of a city fire department, county fire department,
or fire district whose principal duties are those of a telephone
operator, clerk, stenographer, machinist, mechanic, or otherwise,
and whose functions do not clearly fall within the scope of active
firefighting and prevention service.

(d) If the employer is insured, the payments that, except for this
section, the insurer would be obligated to make as disability
indemnity to the injured, the insurer may pay to the insured.

(e) No leave of absence taken pursuant to this section by a peace
officer, as defined by Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830)
of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, or by a city, county, or
district firefighter, shall be deemed to constitute family care and
medical leave, as defined in Section 12945.2 of the Government
Code, or to reduce the time authorized for family care and medical
leave by Section 12945.2 of the Government Code.

(f) This section shall not apply to any persons described in
paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (b) who are employees of the
City and County of San Francisco.

(g) Amendments to subdivision (f) made by the act adding this
subdivision shall be applied retroactively to January 1, 2010.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

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The Legislature finds and declares that a special law
is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable
within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California
Constitution because the work of lifeguards employed year round
on a regular, full-time basis by the City of Oceanside requires the
disability benefits of Section 4850 of the Labor Code.

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SECTION 1.  

Section 3200 of the Labor Code is amended to
read:

3200.  

The Legislature hereby declares its intent that the term
“workmen’s compensation” shall hereafter also be known as
“workers’ compensation,” and that the “Workmen’s Compensation
Appeals Board” shall hereafter be known as the “Workers’
Compensation Appeals Board.” In furtherance of this policy it is
the desire of the Legislature that references to the terms
“workmen’s compensation” and “Workmen’s Compensation
Appeals Board” in this code or elsewhere be changed to “workers’
compensation” and “Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board”
when those laws are being amended for any purpose. This act is
declaratory and not amendatory of existing law.

end delete