BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON
          BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
                              Senator Jerry Hill, Chair
                                2015 - 2016  Regular 

          Bill No:            AB 2025         Hearing Date:    June 13,  
          2016
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Author:   |Gonzalez                                              |
          |----------+------------------------------------------------------|
          |Version:  |June 9, 2016                                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           ---------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Urgency:  |No                     |Fiscal:    |Yes              |
           ---------------------------------------------------------------- 
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Consultant|Sarah Mason                                           |
          |:         |                                                      |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          
              Subject:  Barbering and cosmetology:  labor law education  
                                    requirements


          SUMMARY: Updates the Barbering and Cosmetology Act (Act) to ensure that  
          the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology (BBC) offers all written  
          materials provided to licensees and applicants in English,  
          Spanish and Vietnamese; that the BBC provides practitioner and  
          establishment applicants with information about basic labor laws  
          and; that the BBC includes basic labor law information in health  
          and safety curriculum taught in BBC-approved schools.

          Existing law:
          
          1) Provides for the licensure regulation of the practice of  
             barbering, cosmetology and electrolysis under Act by the BBC.  
              (Business and Professions Code (BPC) § 7300 et. seq.)

          2) Requires BBC to establish a Health and Safety Advisory  
             Committee to provide advice and recommendations on health and  
             safety issues.  (BPC § 7314.3) 

          3) Details requirements for applicants for licensure as a  
             cosmetologist, barber, esthetician, manicurist and  
             electrologist (collectively beautification service providers)  
             to complete in order to take BBC required examinations,  
             including proof of the applicant's qualifications verified by  
             the oath of the applicant. (BPC § 7337)








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 2  
          of ?
          
          
          4) Defines "establishment" as any premises, building or part of  
             a building where any activity licensed under the Act is  
             practiced and sets forth requirements for licensure as an  
             establishment by BBC.  (BPC §§ 7346-7352)

          5) Requires BBC to maintain a program of random and targeted  
             inspections of establishments to ensure compliance with  
             applicable laws relating to the public health and safety and  
             the conduct and operation of establishments.  (BPC § 7353)

          6) Requires licensees to report to BBC upon renewal, including:   
             (BPC § 7401)

             a)   License status, defined as either practicing full time  
               in the state, practicing full time in another state,  
               practicing part-time in the state, not working in the  
               industry, retired or other practice that BBC defines.

             b)   Identification as either an employee, independent  
               contractor, booth renter or salon owner.

             c)   For establishments, whether a booth renter is operating  
               in the establishment or whether an independent contractor  
               is operating in the establishment.

          1) Establishes the Dymally-Alatorre Bilingual Services Act  
             (Dymally-Alatorre) which requires each state agency to  
             conduct a survey, related to its bilingual services, of each  
             of its statewide offices which render services to the public  
             every two years to determine specified information, and to  
             report results and any additional information requested to  
             the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR).   
             Requires the survey to contain a detailed description of  
             complaints regarding language access received by the agency.   
             Dymally-Alatorre also requires each agency that serves a  
             substantial number of non-English-speaking people who  
             comprise 5% or more of the people served to develop an  
             implementation plan, as specified, in every odd-numbered  
             year, and to submit the implementation plan to the department  
             for its review.  Additionally, Dymally-Alatorre requires  
             CalHR, if it determines that a state agency has not made  
             reasonable progress toward complying with the Act, to issue  
             orders that it deems appropriate to effectuate the purposes  
             of Dymally-Alatorre.  (Government Code Section 7290 et seq.)








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 3  
          of ?
          
          

          2) Establishes the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement  
             (DLSE) and grants the Chief of DLSE (Labor Commissioner) and  
             his or her employees free access to all places of labor.   
             States that any person, or agent or officer thereof, who  
             refuses admission to the Labor Commissioner or deputy or  
             agent or who, upon request, willfully neglects or refuses to  
             furnish them any statistics or information, pertaining to  
             their lawful duties is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by  
             a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000).   
             (Labor (LAB) Code §§ 83 and 90)

          3) States the policy of this state to vigorously enforce minimum  
             labor standards in order to ensure employees are not required  
             or permitted to work under substandard unlawful conditions or  
             for employers that have not secured the payment of  
             compensation, and to protect employers who comply with the  
             law from those who attempt to gain a competitive advantage at  
             the expense of their workers by failing to comply with  
             minimum labor standards.  Requires the Labor Commissioner to  
             adopt an enforcement plan for the field enforcement unit  
             which shall identify priorities for investigations to be  
             undertaken by the unit that ensure the available resources  
             will be concentrated in industries, occupations, and areas in  
             which employees are relatively low paid and unskilled, and  
             those in which there has been a history of violations and  
             those with high rates of noncompliance with the law.  (LAB §  
             90.5)

          4) Authorizes the Labor Commissioner, after investigation and  
             upon determination that wages or monetary benefits are due  
             and unpaid to any worker in the State of California, to  
             collect such wages or benefits on behalf of the worker  
             without assignment of such wages or benefits to the  
             Commissioner.  (LAB § 96.7)

          5) Authorizes the Labor Commissioner to investigate employee  
             complaints and provide for a hearing in any action to recover  
             wages, penalties, and other demands for compensation.  (LAB §  
             98)

          6) Prohibits an employer or agent from collecting, taking, or  
             receiving any gratuity or a part thereof that is paid, given  
             to, or left for an employee by a patron, or deduct any amount  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 4  
          of ?
          
          
             from wages due an employee on account of a gratuity, or  
             require an employee to credit the amount, or any part  
             thereof, of a gratuity against and as a part of the wages due  
             the employee from the employer. Provides that every gratuity  
             is hereby declared to be the sole property of the employee or  
             employees to whom it was paid, given, or left for.  Requires  
             an employer that permits patrons to pay gratuities by credit  
             card to pay the employees the full amount of the gratuity  
             that the patron indicated on the credit card slip, without  
             any deductions for any credit card payment processing fees or  
             costs that may be charged to the employer by the credit card  
             company.  Provides that payment of gratuities made by patrons  
             using credit cards shall be made to the employees not later  
             than the next regular payday following the date the patron  
             authorized the credit card payment.  (LAB § 351)

          7) Requires, at the time of hiring, an employer to provide each  
             employee a written notice, in the language the employer  
             normally uses to communicate employment-related information  
             to the employee, containing information about the rate or  
             rates of pay.  (LAB § 2810.5)

          This bill:

          1)Requires BBC to offer and make available all written materials  
            provided to licensees and applicants in English, Spanish, and  
            Vietnamese.

          2)Requires BBC, beginning January 1, 2018, to collect  
            demographic information for establishment license applicants,  
            through optional questions on the applications for a license  
            issued pursuant to Section 7396.1, including but not limited  
            to the applicant's spoken and written language preference.

          3)Expands the role of the BBC Health and Safety Advisory  
            Committee to require recommendations be provided on issues  
            impacting board licensees, including how to ensure licensees  
            are aware of basic labor laws.  States that basic labor laws  
            (BLLs) includes, but is not limited to all of the following:

             a)   Key differences between the legal rights, benefits, and  
               obligations of an employee and an independent contractor;

             b)    Wage and hour rights for hourly employees;








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 5  
          of ?
          
          

             c)   Antidiscrimination laws relating to the use of a  
               particular language in the workplace;

             d)   Anti-retaliation laws relating to a worker's right to  
               file complaints with the Department of Industrial Relations  
               and; 

             e)   How to obtain more information about state and federal  
               labor law.

          1)Requires applications for licensure as a beautification  
            service provider to include a signed acknowledgment that the  
            applicant understands his or her rights as a licensee as  
            outlined in informational materials BLLs that the applicant is  
            provided by BBC with the application.

          2)Requires applications for licensure as an establishment to  
            include a signed acknowledgment that the applicant understands  
            that establishments are responsible for compliance with any  
            applicable labor laws of the state and that the applicant  
            understands informational materials on BLLs the applicant is  
            provided by BBC with the application.

          3)Adds BLLs to the health and safety course BBC develops or  
            adopts taught in BBC-approved schools.  


          FISCAL  
          EFFECT:  This bill is keyed "fiscal" by Legislative Counsel.   
          According to the Assembly Committee on Appropriations analysis  
          dated May 11, 2016, this bill will result in minor and  
          absorbable costs to BBC to develop and add general check mark  
          questions regarding the applicant's understanding of BLLs to the  
          application for licensure, however the analysis noted that if  
          the questions instead require exam-like answers and correct  
          answers are a condition of licensure, the fiscal impact would be  
          substantially higher.  The analysis also estimates minor and  
          absorbable costs to BBC to create and make available information  
          and to translate written materials, as BBC indicates they have  
          the necessary information and are in the process of translating  
          materials currently.  According to the analysis, the bill will  
          result in minor and absorbable costs for any IT workload  
          required. 








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 6  
          of ?
          
          


          COMMENTS:
          
          1. Purpose.  The  California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative  is  
             the sponsor of this bill.  According to the Author,  
             California has many strong labor standards, but part of  
             enforcing those laws is making sure workers know their  
             rights, and that business owners are aware of obligations to  
             the workers in those businesses.  The Author notes that "AB  
             2025 takes the opportunity to educate workers and salon  
             owners using existing license application processes and  
             training requirements.  The Legislature also knows that  
             language barriers are a problem for establishments regulated  
             by the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology, especially nail  
             salons, which is why AB 2025 includes provisions to improve  
             language access for both workers and businesses."

             According to the Author, due to concern over labor practices  
             in the nail salon industry, AB 2025 will amend the Act to  
             improve knowledge of workers' rights among both business  
             (establishment) owners and workers.  The Author states that  
             AB 2025 will also improve language access for owners and  
             workers and help BBC obtain demographic information to better  
             serve establishments.  According to the Author, the nail  
             salon industry in California is predominately Vietnamese  
             immigrants, a significant number of whom have limited English  
             proficiency.  The most widely agreed-upon problem discussed  
             was lack of information about worker rights.  This lack of  
             information, combined with cultural and language barriers,  
             has led to some nail salon owners using illegal practices to  
             manage workers.  These practices include employee/contractor  
             misclassification, daily pay totaling less than minimum wage,  
             unpaid overtime, withholding tips or deducting pay as  
             retaliation, denying meal breaks, and language  
             discrimination. It is clear to many stakeholders that the use  
             of such illegal labor practices is not always malicious, so  
             one commonsense step is to ensure that owners are informed of  
             existing laws.  AB 2025 utilizes the current establishment  
             application process to increase awareness of basic labor laws  
             relevant to establishments without onerous requirements on  
             businesses. 

          2. BBC Establishment Inspections.  BBC is responsible for  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 7  
          of ?
          
          
             licensing and regulating barbers, cosmetologists,  
             estheticians, electrologists, manicurists, apprentices, and  
             establishments.  The BBC licenses and regulates over 550,000  
             licensees, including over 52,000 establishments.  To ensure  
             compliance with the BBC's health and safety and licensing  
             regulations, random and targeted inspections of  
             establishments are conducted.  BBC does not consider labor  
             standards or labor practices during its inspections.  

             BBC reported the following inspection and citation/fine  
             information to this Committee during the sunset review  
             oversight of BBC in 2014-15.  According to BBC, the most  
             common violations that result in a citation are related to  
             health and safety.  


           ------------------------------------------------- 
          |            |    FY    | | FY 2012-13 |    FY    |
          |            | 2011-12  | |            | 2013-14  |
           ------------------------------------------------- 
          |------------+----------+-+------------+-----------|
          |Establishmen|  14,012  | |   11,580   |  11,979   |
          |     ts     |          | |            |           |
          | Inspected  |          | |            |           |
          |------------+----------+-+------------+-----------|
          | Citations  |  10,543  | |   8,977    |   8,257   |
          | Issued to  |          | |            |           |
          |Establishmen|          | |            |           |
          |     ts     |          | |            |           |
          |------------+----------+-+------------+-----------|
          | Citations  |  7,683   | |   6,291    |   6,452   |
          | Issued to  |          | |            |           |
          |Individuals |          | |            |           |
          |------------+----------+-+------------+-----------|
          |   Total    |  18,234  | |   15,268   |  14,709   |
          | Citations  |          | |            |           |
          |   Issued   |          | |            |           |
          |------------+----------+-+------------+-----------|
          |Establishmen|  2,863   | |   2,051    |3,046      |
          | ts with No |          | |            |           |
          | Violations |          | |            |           |
          |   Cited    |          | |            |           |
           -------------------------------------------------- 









          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 8  
          of ?
          
          
          
          3. Concerns About Nail Salons and Experiences of Nail Salon  
             Employees.  Nail salons have been the focus of studies and  
             media reports in recent years stemming from health, safety  
             and labor concerns in these settings.  In May 2015, the New  
             York Times (NYT) published two articles stemming from  
             interviews with more than 150 nail salon workers and owners  
             that found that a cast majority of workers are paid below  
             minimum wage and are sometimes not even paid.  The articles  
             found that workers "endure all manner of humiliation,  
             including having their tips docked as punishment for minor  
             transgressions, constant video monitoring by owners, even  
             physical abuse."  The NYT also found that employers are  
             rarely punished for labor and other violations and that in  
             2014, when the New York State Labor Department conducted its  
             first nail salon sweep, investigators inspected 29 salons and  
             found 116 wage violations.  While only about a quarter of the  
             more than 100 workers said they were paid an amount  
             equivalent to that state's minimum hourly wage, all but three  
             said they had wages withheld in ways considered illegal, such  
             as never getting overtime and many were unaware that working  
             unpaid was against the law and their alarmingly low wages are  
             also illegal.  
            
             A February 2016 follow up report in the NYT articles found  
             that 40 percent of the salons inspected, as part of the Labor  
             Department's increased efforts to inspect following the  
             original May articles, underpaid employees, including one  
             worker at a Manhattan salon who was paid $30 a day for  
             10-hour shifts, a manicurist in Queens who was paid only $200  
             for a 50-hour workweek, manicurists at seven salons who were  
             forced to work for no pay or had to pay salon owners a fee,  
             ostensibly to learn the trade and several owners admitted to  
             submitting fake payroll records in an effort to fool  
             investigators.  The article highlighted that employers are  
             often unfamiliar with the intricacies of state labor laws. 

             On August 26, 2015, the Assembly Select Committee on Women in  
             the Workplace, the Assembly Select Committee on Girls and  
             Women of Color, and the Assembly Committees on Health,  
             Business and Professions, and Labor held a joint  
             informational hearing titled "Labor Practices, Health, and  
             Safety in California Nail Salons."  The purpose of the  
             hearing was to obtain information, address concerns, and  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 9  
          of ?
          
          
             discuss policy recommendations regarding nail salon practices  
             from state agencies, advocates, and industry.  

             The Author notes that the most widely agreed-upon problem  
             discussed at the hearing was lack of information about worker  
             rights. According to the Author, this lack of information,  
             combined with cultural and language barriers, has led to some  
             nail salon owners using illegal practices to manage workers.  
             These practices include employee/contractor  
             misclassification, daily pay totaling less than minimum wage,  
             unpaid overtime, withholding tips or deducting pay as  
             retaliation, denying meal breaks, and language  
             discrimination. The Author states that it is clear to many  
             stakeholders that the use of such illegal labor practices is  
             not always malicious, so one commonsense step is to ensure  
             that owners are informed of existing laws, which this bill  
             intends to do by utilizing the current establishment  
             application process to increase awareness of basic labor laws  
             relevant to establishments without onerous requirements on  
             businesses.  The measure would set forth requirements for all  
             BBC establishments, including nail salons.
          
          4. Wages and Tips.  In 2008, the Ford Foundation sponsored a  
             survey of 4,387 workers in low-wage industries in the three  
             largest U.S. cities: Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City.   
             The report of that survey, titled Broken Laws, Unprotected  
             Workers: Violations of Employment and Labor Laws in America's  
             Cities, revealed that 26 percent of workers in the sample  
             were paid less than the legally required minimum wage the  
             prior work week, and 60 percent of these workers were  
             underpaid by more than $1 per hour.  In addition, 76 percent  
             of the respondents who worked overtime in the previous week  
             were not paid the legally required overtime rate by their  
             employers.

             The study also notes that minimum wage violation rates vary  
             significantly by industry, and occupation.  For example, some  
             industries, such as apparel and textile manufacturing and  
             personal and repair services have minimum wage violation  
             rates that exceed 40 percent, while others, including  
             restaurants, and retail and grocery stores, have rates of 20  
             to 25 percent.  However, the study found that undocumented  
             immigrant women were at the greatest risk of minimum wage  
             violations.  The study estimated that the workers in low-wage  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 10  
          of ?
          
          
             industries Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City lose more  
             than $56.4 million per week due to labor law violations.

             A follow-up study by the UCLA Institute for Research and  
             Labor and Employment was published in 2015, and that study  
             utilized the data from the 2008 survey, but focused  
             specifically on Los Angeles County.  This study, titled Wage  
             Theft and Workplace Violations in Los Angeles: The Failure of  
             Employment and Labor Law for Low-Wage Workers focused on a  
             survey results of 1,815 workers in Los Angeles County.  

             This study found similar results to the national survey:  
             almost 30 percent of the workers sampled were paid less than  
             the minimum wage in the prior work week, and 63.3 percent of  
             these workers were underpaid by more than $1 per hour.   
             Assuming a full-year work schedule, Los Angeles County survey  
             respondents lost an average of $2,070.00 annually out of  
             total earnings of $16,536.00.  The study estimated that  
             workers in low-wage industries in Los Angeles County lose  
             more than $26.2 million per week as a result of employment  
                                     and labor law violations.

             Both of the studies make the same public policy  
             recommendations to address these issues, which included  
             strengthening government enforcement of existing employment  
             and labor laws and stiffening the penalties.

             The low rate of collections of wages has also been evaluated.  
              According to a 2013 report published by the National  
             Employment Law Project (NELP) and the UCLA Labor Center, only  
             17 percent of workers who prevailed in their wage claims  
             before the DLSE and won a judgment were able to receive any  
             payment between 2008 and 2011.  Of those who did receive  
             payment between 2008 and 2011, workers were able to collect  
             15 percent of what was owed.  In short, the vast majority of  
             wage theft victims received nothing, and those that received  
             anything received little of what they were legally due.

             Tips withheld by nail salon employers was highlighted in the  
             New York Times series.  According to the Internal Revenue  
             Service, tips are discretionary (optional or extra) payments  
             determined by a customer that employees receive from  
             customers.  Tips include cash tips received directly from  
             customers, tips from customers who leave a tip through  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 11  
          of ?
          
          
             electronic settlement or payment (including a credit card,  
             debit card, gift card, or any other electronic payment  
             method), the value of any noncash tips, such as tickets, or  
             other items of value and tip amounts received from other  
             employees paid out through tip pools or tip splitting, or  
             other formal or informal tip sharing arrangement.  All cash  
             and non-cash tips an employee receives are income and are  
             subject to Federal income taxes.  All cash tips received by  
             an employee in any calendar month are subject to social  
             security and Medicare taxes and must be reported to the  
             employer, unless the tips received by the employee during a  
             single calendar month while working for the employer total  
             less than $20.  Cash tips include tips received from  
             customers, charged tips (e.g., credit and debit card charges)  
             distributed to the employee by his or her employer, and tips  
             received from other employees under any tip-sharing  
             arrangement.  
            
             According to the United States Department of Labor (USDL),  
             tipped employees are those who customarily and regularly  
             receive more than $30 per month in tips. Tips are the  
             property of the employee.  The employer is prohibited from  
             using an employee's tips for any reason other than as a  
             credit against its minimum wage obligation to the employee  
             ("tip credit") or in furtherance of a valid tip pool.   
             Employers electing to use the tip credit provision must be  
             able to show that tipped employees receive at least the  
             minimum wage when direct (or cash) wages and the tip credit  
             amount are combined.  If an employee's tips combined with the  
             employer's direct (or cash) wages of at least $2.13 per hour  
             do not equal the minimum hourly wage of $7.25 per hour, the  
             employer must make up the difference.  USDL notes that a tip  
             is the sole property of the tipped employee regardless of  
             whether the employer takes a tip credit and that the Fair  
             Labor Standards Act (FLSA) prohibits any arrangement between  
             the employer and the tipped employee whereby any part of the  
             tip received becomes the property of the employer.  For  
             example, even where a tipped employee receives at least $7.25  
             per hour in wages directly from the employer, the employee  
             may not be required to turn over his or her tips to the  
             employer.

          5. Government Agency Efforts to Serve California's LEP  
             Population and Challenges Faced by BBC.  The 2010 U.S. Census  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 12  
          of ?
          
          
             found that more than 6.5 million residents of California, one  
             out of every five, speak English "less than very well."  Over  
             44 percent of Californians speak a language other than  
             English at home.  
             
             Dymally-Alatorre ensures that all California residents,  
             including those who are limited English proficient (LEP),  
             have equal access to public services. Dymally-Alatorre  
             requires every state and local agency to have a sufficient  
             number of qualified bilingual staff and translated written  
             materials so that the LEP population they serve are able to  
             effectively access and communicate with government.   
             Dymally-Alatorre became law in 1973 with the Legislative  
             intent of ensuring people are not precluded from accessing  
             public services because of language barriers.  It requires  
             agencies to provide the same information that is available in  
             English in other languages if the agency services a  
             "substantial number" of non-English speakers.  To determine  
             which languages must be included under the defined threshold,  
             agencies are required to conduct surveys every other year to  
             assess their contact with non-English speakers.  Then, they  
             must create or update implementation plans to ensure  
             compliance and submit them to CalHR.  BBC, as a state agency,  
             is currently subject to requirements under Dymally-Alatorre. 

             Stakeholders like those in support of this bill have weighed  
             in at BBC meetings and to the Legislature during the sunset  
             review oversight of BBC highlighting concerns with the BBC  
             inspection process, especially as it pertains to language  
             barriers.  BBC regulates a very diverse population, which  
             includes many LEP individuals who cannot always understand  
             English-language inspection forms or are met with  
             communication problems during an inspection.  BBC has not  
             historically had a standardized protocol or systematic  
             process for inspectors when they encounter potential language  
             barriers, which has been a factor in complications during the  
             inspection process as well as dissatisfactory outcomes for  
             licensees.  

             During its last sunset review oversight in 2014-15, BBC noted  
             that it made language access one of its priorities.   To that  
             end, BBC has translated all of its documents into Vietnamese,  
             Spanish, and Korean, including complaint forms.  In April  
             2014, the BBC reported that it established a separate link on  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 13  
          of ?
          
          
             its website for the Vietnamese-speaking community which  
             includes 42 fact sheets that have been translated into  
             Vietnamese.  In June 2014, links were created for the  
             Spanish-speaking community and the Korean-speaking community.  
              The fact sheet topics range from "what to expect during an  
             inspection" to "industry advisory notices."   In addition,  
             the inspection report was translated into Vietnamese so that  
             inspectors can provide a handout of the report that indicates  
             the violations found so that the licensee has the option to  
             read these violations in his or her first language.  

             BBC has held Town Hall meetings for Vietnamese-speaking  
             licensees with the intention of providing licensees  
             opportunities to learn about the most common violations found  
             in establishments, the inspection process, and the citation  
             appeal process.  In August 2014, the BBC added an insert to  
             all citations that states if the recipient of the citation  
             needs assistance in understanding the citation, to call the  
             Cite and Fine Unit and he or she will be connected with an  
             interpreter.  BBC reported that it is also working with the  
             Department of Consumer Affairs to provide training to  
             inspectors; inspectors have been trained in cultural  
             diversity and procedures for handling hostile situations and  
             in October 2014, they were slated to receive tactical verbal  
             training.  In its responses to sunset review, BBC indicated  
             that effective May 1, 2015, BBC would issue all citations to  
             all manicurists and establishments cited for manicuring  
             violations in English and Vietnamese and would be developing  
             a protocol for inspectors as means of assisting in the  
             process of inspecting establishments with LEP licensees.

          6. Booth Renters.  A BBC licensee who performs beautification  
             services may own his or her own business or work for someone  
             else at their shop.  Licensees may be directly employed by an  
             establishment or may be an independent contractor.  The  
             industry designation for independent contractors in BBC  
             licensed establishments is "booth renter".
             
             "Booth renters" are licensed professionals who may not own an  
             establishment but rent space from an owner.  A booth renter,  
             or independent contractor, is a practitioner who qualifies as  
             an independent contractor under California tax law and who is  
             not under the control and direction of a licensed  
             establishment.  Booth renters or independent contractors pay  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 14  
          of ?
          
          
             their own worker's compensation insurance and taxes, maintain  
             their own business license, establish their own work  
             schedules and have access to the establishment at any time.   
             The booth renter is considered a separate business entity  
             operating within the establishment.  

          7. Related Legislation This Year.   AB 2125  (Chiu) requires the  
             California Department of Public Health (DPH) to develop and  
             publish guidelines for local governments to implement local  
             healthy nail salon recognition programs with specified  
             criteria, including the use of less toxic nail polishes and  
             polish removers and improved ventilation.  Requires DPH to  
             develop awareness campaigns and post specified information on  
             its Internet Web site.  Permits DPH to prioritize its  
             outreach to counties with the greatest number of nail salons.  
              (  Status:   The bill is pending in the Senate.)
             
              AB 2437  (Ting) requires on and after July 1, 2017, an  
             establishment licensed by BBC to post a model notice  
             pertaining to workplace rights and wage and hour laws,  
             developed by the Commissioner and requires the BBC to inspect  
             for compliance of the posting requirement.   (  Status:   The  
             bill is pending in the Senate.)  
              SB 1125  (Nguyen) requires BBC, for an establishment license,  
             if the establishment will offer nail care services, to  
             include a signed acknowledgement that an applicant  
             understands their responsibility to comply with any  
             applicable state labor laws and comply with the informational  
             materials BBC selects or develops related to basic labor  
             laws.  (  Status:   The bill is pending in the Assembly  
             Committee on Business and Professions.) 
          
          8. Prior Related Legislation.   SB 549  (Correa) would have  
             authorized BBC to collect gender, language and ethnicity data  
             from new licensure applicants and renewal licenses and posted  
             certain information on the BBC's website.  (  Status:   The bill  
             was vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger who wrote that "The  
             stated intent of this bill is based on the belief that the  
             collection of statistics on the gender, ethnicity, and  
             language preference of the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology  
             (Board) licensees will lead to improved working conditions.  
             Since that connection is specious at best, I do not believe  
             this is an area that requires micromanagement of the Board".)  
               








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 15  
          of ?
          
          
            
              AB 2689  (Tran) of 2008 would have established the Vietnamese  
             Nail Worker Information Act which would require manufacturers  
             and certain other persons that sell or use professional  
             use-only nail care products to prepare, translate and provide  
             material safety data sheets (MSDS) in the Vietnamese language  
             to purchasers of the products as well as licensed  
             professional nail care employees upon request.  (  Status:   The  
             bill was held under submission in the Assembly Committee on  
             Appropriations.)

              AB 2449  (Correa, Chapter 316, Statutes of 2002) required BBC  
             licensees to provide certain, specified information to when  
             they renew their license and requires the Bureau to report  
             back to the Legislature on  the information they collect  
             pursuant to this measure, including the provisions outlined  
             in BPC § 7401 above related to booth renters.

              SB 1134  (Karnette) of 1999 would have established certain  
             contractual provisions to be entered into between  
             establishment owners and independent contractors (booth  
             renters) who were licensed by the then-Barbering and  
             Cosmetology Program and would have required the Program to  
             register all independent contractors and issue a certificate  
             of registration to be displayed where they work.  (  Status:    
             The bill was never heard in a policy committee of the  
             Assembly.)

              AB 1358  (Karnette) of 1993 would have specified that a booth  
             renter in the cosmetology industry is an employee and not an  
             independent contractor for purposes of unemployment  
             insurance, state disability insurance, employment  training  
             and personal income tax purposes according to certain  
             conditions.  (  Status:   The bill was vetoed by Governor Wilson  
             who indicated in his veto message that given the complexity  
             in the possible arrangements between salon owners and  
             cosmetologists, a case-by-case determination would seem to  
             make more sense.  These are small businesses that should have  
             the right to determine what arrangements would make their  
             business most economically feasible.)
          
          9. Arguments in Support.  A number of nonprofit organizations  
             focused on improving the health of Asian Americans, serving  
             the Asian American community in California and groups that  








          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 16  
          of ?
          
          
             work closely with nail salon workers and their families, as  
             well as those with experience advocating for employment and  
             labor rights, are in support of this bill.  Supporters  
             believe the bill strikes the right balance in its focus on  
             education and removal of language barriers while requiring  
             owners to have a basic understanding of their obligations  
             under California labor law.

              The Board of Barbering and Cosmetology   and  Professional  
             Beauty Federation of California  had as a support if amended  
             position on the previous version of this measure, expressing  
             concerns about requirements that would have placed questions  
             about BLLs on an application rather than requiring that  
             applicant acknowledge understanding of BLLs on the  
             application.

           
          NOTE  :  Double-referral to Senate Committee on Labor, second.
          

          SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
          
           Support:  

          Asian Health Services 
          Asian and Pacific Islander American Health Forum 
          Black Women for Wellness
          Board of Barbering and Cosmetology
          California Employment Lawyers Association 
          California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative (Sponsor)
          California Immigrant Policy Center
          California Labor Federation
          California Pan-Ethnic Health Network 
          Community Action Marin
          Immigrant Resettlement & Cultural Center, Inc. 
          Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance
          Professional Beauty Federation of California
          National Employment Law Center 
          WorkSafe

           Opposition:  

          None on file as of June 7, 2016.









          AB 2025 (Gonzalez)                                      Page 17  
          of ?
          
          

                                      -- END --