[Approved by Governor September 21, 2016. Filed with Secretary of State September 21, 2016.]
AB 2105, Rodriguez. Workforce development: allied health professions.
Existing law establishes the California Workforce Development Board as the body responsible for assisting the Governor in the development, oversight, and continuous improvement of California’s workforce investment system and the alignment of the education and workforce investment systems to the needs of the 21st century economy and workforce. Existing law requires the board, among other things, to prepare and submit to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature a report on the board’s findings and recommendations regarding expanding job training and employment for allied health professions.
This bill would require the Department of Consumer Affairs, by January 1, 2020, to engage in a stakeholder process to update policies and remove barriers to facilitate the development of earn and learn training programs in the allied health professions, including barriers identified in the report described above, as specified.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 14017 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended to read:
(a) In efforts to expand job training and employment for allied health professions, the California Workforce Development Board, in consultation with the Division of Apprenticeship Standards, shall do the following:
(1) Identify opportunities for “earn and learn” job training opportunities that meet the industry’s workforce demands and that are in high-wage, high-demand jobs.
(2) Identify and develop specific requirements and qualifications for entry into “earn and learn” job training models.
(3) Establish standards for “earn and learn” job training programs that are outcome oriented and accountable. The standards shall measure the results from program participation, including a measurement of how many complete the program with an industry-recognized credential that certifies that the individual is ready to enter the specific allied health profession for which he or she has been trained.
(4) Develop means to identify, assess, and prepare a pool of qualified candidates seeking to enter “earn and learn” job training models.
(b) (1) The board, on or before December 1, 2015, shall prepare and submit to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature a report on the findings and recommendations of the board.
(2) The requirement for submitting a report imposed pursuant to this subdivision is inoperative on January 1, 2019, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.
(c) (1) The Department of Consumer Affairs shall engage in a stakeholder process to update policies and remove barriers to facilitate the development of earn and learn training programs in the allied health professions, including barriers identified in the report prepared by the board pursuant to subdivision (b), entitled Expanding Earn and Learn Models in the California Health Care Industry. The stakeholder process shall include all of the following:
(A) The department convening allied health workforce stakeholders, which shall include, but are not limited to, the department’s relevant licensure boards, the Division of Apprenticeship Standards, representatives appointed by the board of governors from the California community college system, the California Workforce Development Board, and the State Department of Public Health, and which may include other relevant entities such as the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, employer and worker representatives, and community-based organizations.
(B) Addressing issues that include, but are not limited to, prelicensure classifications in allied health occupations that would allow students, in a supervised setting, to gain experience in their chosen field before obtaining licensure, and the payment of wages while in a workplace-based training program.
(C) The department ensuring that existing standards of consumer protection are maintained.
(D) Sharing any statutory barriers identified through this process with the relevant committees of the Legislature.
(2) The process described in paragraph (1) shall be completed by, and this subdivision shall be inoperative on, January 1, 2020.
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