BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 780
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 3, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 780
(Mendoza) - As Introduced February 27, 2015
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Policy |Public Employees, |Vote:|5 - 1 |
|Committee: |Retirement/Soc Sec | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill modifies mandatory overtime policy for psychiatric
technicians (PTs) and psychiatric technician assistants (PTAs)
in state hospitals or facilities. Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits a facility from requiring a PT or PTA to work in
excess of a regularly scheduled workweek or work shift, except
for any PT or PTA participating and needed in surgical
procedure or when there is a catastrophic event or emergency,
as defined.
SB 780
Page 2
2)Authorizes a PT or PTA to volunteer to work extra hours, but
specifies that the refusal by a PT or PTA to work such hours
will not be grounds for discrimination or other type of
penalty.
3)Requires management and supervisors to consider employees to
fulfill additional staffing needs of a facility in the
following priority order:
a) Employees who volunteer or agree to work additional
hours;
b) Individuals who are part-time or intermittent employees;
then,
c) Employees who are on call or are on standby.
FISCAL EFFECT:
Estimated annual costs of $5.7 million GF and SF to the
Department of Developmental Services (DDS), $17 million GF to
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), and
$7.1 million GF and SF to the Department of State Hospitals
(DSH) for additional employees that will replace existing
mandatory overtime hours. While there will be potential
offsetting savings to each department for not paying overtime,
these savings are not fully known.
COMMENTS:
1)Current overtime policy for PTs and PTAs. The existing
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the state and
Bargaining Unit 18 addresses the issue of overtime and
SB 780
Page 3
specifies that overtime hours will be paid in cash or
compensated time-off at a rate of one and one-half times the
employee's regular rate of pay. Additionally, the contract
provides that except in cases of emergency, employees shall
not be required to: 1) work more than six mandated overtime
shifts of at least two hours duration in a month; 2) work in
excess of sixteen hours continuously; 3) work in excess of two
overtime shifts within an employee's scheduled work week; or,
4) work overtime on two consecutive calendar days.
Moreover, the current contract also addresses related items
including employee rotation schedules after working mandatory
overtime, the allowance of securing a volunteer to cover one's
mandatory overtime, FMLA entitlement, the prohibition of
employees from being scheduled to work overtime on their day
off, and prohibits mandatory overtime on an employee's RDO,
except for during an emergency as specified. Before an
employee is required to work mandatory overtime, management is
required to make every effort to schedule appropriate
available employees, including permanent intermittent
employees, retired annuitants, registry staff, and volunteers.
1)Current disagreements. The author contends that despite
overtime protections established in the bargaining agreement,
the state has repeatedly violated the contract. The author's
office notes that state has routinely violated the contract
forcing the union to file grievance after grievance. In each
case, the union has won their grievances; however, the remedy
the state offers is to "not do it again"?Unfortunately, this
issue has been brought up in collective bargaining before with
no movement from the administration."
2)Purpose. According to the author, SB 780 will help ensure that
the state staffs its psychiatric facilities appropriately to
SB 780
Page 4
provide excellent patient care. Supporters contend that this
bill is needed because mandatory overtime practices can lead
to increased stress on the job, less patient comfort, and
fatigue that can contribute to errors.
Analysis Prepared by:Luke Reidenbach / APPR. / (916)
319-2081