Amended in Assembly March 30, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2757

Introduced by Assembly Members Gonzalez, Bonta, begin delete Cristina Garcia, end delete begin insert Cristina Garcia, end insert and Roger Hernández

(Principal coauthor: Senator Hall)

(Coauthors: Assembly Members begin insert Burke, end insert Calderon, Campos, Chiu, Chu, Gipson, Jones-Sawyer, Lopez, McCarty, Medina, Santiago, begin delete Mark Stone, end delete begin insert Mark Stone, end insert Thurmond, and Ting)

(Coauthors: Senators Beall, Block, Hancock, Lara, Leno, Liu, and Mitchell)

February 19, 2016

An act to amend Section 554 of, and to add Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 857) to Part 2 of Division 2 of, the Labor Code, relating to employment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2757, as amended, Gonzalez. Agricultural begin delete Workers: end delete begin insert workers: end insert wages, hours, and working conditions.

Existing law sets wage, hour, meal break requirements, and other working conditions for employees and requires an employer to pay overtime wages as specified to an employee who works in excess of a workday or workweek, as defined, and imposes criminal penalties for the violation of these requirements. Existing law exempts agricultural employees from these requirements. begin insert Under existing law, the function of the Department of Industrial Relations is to, among other things, foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners of California, to improve their working conditions, and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment. end insert

This bill would remove the exemption for agricultural employees regarding hours, meal breaks, and other working conditions, including specified wage begin delete requirements end delete begin insert requirements, end insert and would create a schedule that would begin delete phase-in end delete begin insert phase in end insert overtime requirements for agricultural workers, as defined, over the course of 4 years, from 2017 to 2020, inclusive. begin insert Beginning January 1, 2020, the bill would require any work performed by a person, employed in an agricultural occupation, in excess of 12 hours in one day to be compensated at the rate of no less than twice the employee’s regular rate of pay. The bill would require the Department of Industrial Relations to update a specified wage order for consistency with these provisions. end insert

The bill would create a state-mandated local program by including agricultural employees as a class of employees protected by criminal penalties under existing law.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 554 of the Labor Code is amended to
read:

554.  

(a) Sections 551 and 552 do not apply to cases of
emergency or to work performed in the protection of life or
property from loss or destruction, or to any common carrier
engaged in or connected with the movement of trains. Nothing in
this chapter shall be construed to prevent an accumulation of days
of rest when the nature of the employment reasonably requires
that the employee work seven or more consecutive days, if in each
calendar month the employee receives days of rest equivalent to
one day’s rest in seven. The requirement respecting the equivalent
of one day’s rest in seven shall apply, notwithstanding the other
provisions of this chapter relating to collective bargaining
agreements, where the employer and a labor organization
representing employees of the employer have entered into a valid
collective bargaining agreement respecting the hours of work of
the employees, unless the agreement expressly provides otherwise.

(b) In addition to the exceptions specified in subdivision (a),
the Chief of the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement may,
when in his or her judgment hardship will result, exempt any
employer or employees from the provisions of Sections 551 and
552.

SEC. 2.  

Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 857) is added
to Part 2 of Division 2 of the Labor Code, to read:

 

Chapter  6. Agriculture

 

857.  

This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the
Phase-In Overtime for Agricultural Workers Act of 2016.

858.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a) Agricultural employees engage in back-breaking work every
day.

(b) Few occupations in today’s America are as physically
demanding and exhausting as agricultural work.

(c) In 1938, the United States Congress enacted the federal Fair
Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 201 et seq.), which
excluded agricultural workers from wage protections and overtime
compensation requirements.

(d) It is the intent of the Legislature to enact the Phase-In
Overtime for Agricultural Workers Act of 2016 to provide any
person employed in an agricultural occupation in California, as
defined in Order No. 14-2001 of the Industrial Welfare
Commission (revised 07-2014) with an opportunity to earn
overtime compensation under the same standards as millions of
other Californians.

859.  

For purposes of this chapter, “employed in an agricultural
occupation” has the same meaning as in Order No.14-2001 of the
Industrial Welfare Commission (revised 07-2014).

860.  

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including
Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 500):

(a) Commencing July 1, 2017, any person employed in an
agricultural occupation shall not be employed more than nine and
one-half hours in any one workday or work in excess of 55 hours
in any one workweek, unless the employee receives one and
one-half times begin delete such end delete begin insert that end insert employee’s regular rate of pay for all
hours worked over nine and one-half hours in any begin delete workday. end delete

begin insert workday or over 55 hours in any workweek. end insert

(b) Commencing January 1, 2018, any person employed in an
agricultural occupation shall not be employed more than nine hours
in any one workday or work in excess of 50 hours in any one
workweek, unless the employee receives one and one-half times
begin delete such end delete begin insert that end insert employee’s regular rate of pay for all hours worked over
nine hours in any begin delete workday. end delete begin insert workday or over 50 hours in any
workweek. end insert

(c) Commencing January 1, 2019, any person employed in an
agricultural occupation shall not be employed more than eight and
one-half hours in any one workday or work in excess of 45 hours
in any one workweek, unless the employee receives one and
one-half times begin delete such end delete begin insert that end insert employee’s regular rate of pay for all
hours worked over eight and one-half hours in any begin delete workday. end delete

begin insert workday or over 45 hours in any workweek. end insert

(d) Commencing January 1, 2020, any person employed in an
agricultural occupation shall not be employed more than eight
hours in any one workday or work in excess of 40 hours in any
one workweek, unless the employee receives one and one-half
times begin delete such end delete begin insert that end insert employee’s regular rate of pay for all hours worked
over eight hours in any begin delete workday. end delete begin insert workday or over 40 hours in any
workweek. end insert

861.  

Except as set forth in Section begin delete 860, end delete begin insert 860 and subdivision
(a) of Section 862, end insert all other provisions of Chapter 1 (commencing
with Section 500) regarding compensation for overtime work shall
apply to workers in an agricultural occupation commencing January
1, 2017.

begin insert

begin insert 862. end insert   

(a) Beginning January 1, 2020, and consistent with
Section 510, any work performed by a person, employed in an
agricultural occupation, in excess of 12 hours in one day shall be
compensated at the rate of no less than twice the employee’s
regular rate of pay.

(b) Consistent with Section 861, notwithstanding subdivision
(a), the other provisions of Section 510 shall be applicable to
workers in an agricultural occupation commencing January 1,
2017.

end insert begin insert

begin insert 863. end insert   

The Department of Industrial Relations shall update Wage
Order No. 14-2001 to be consistent with this chapter.

end insert

SEC. 3.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.