Senate Bill No. 985

Introduced by Senator Berryhill

February 10, 2016

An act to amend Section 511 of the Labor Code, relating to employment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 985, as introduced, Berryhill. Alternative workweek schedule.

Existing law authorizes an employer to propose a regularly scheduled alternative workweek, as specified, that will be adopted if it receives approval in a secret ballot election by at least 2⁄3 of affected employees in a work unit.

This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to those provisions.

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 511 of the Labor Code is amended to
read:

511.  

(a) Upon the proposal of an employer, the employees of
an employer may adopt a regularly scheduled alternative workweek
that authorizes work by the affected employees for no longer than
10 hours per day within a 40-hour workweek without the payment
to the affected employees of an overtime rate of compensation
pursuant to this section. A proposal to adopt an alternative
workweek schedule shall be deemed adopted only if it receives
approval in a secret ballot election by at least two-thirds of affected
employees in a readily identifiable work unit. The regularly
scheduled alternative workweek proposed by an employer for
adoption by employees may be a single work schedule that would
become the standard schedule for workers in the work unit, or a
menu of work schedule options, from which each employee in the
unit would be entitled to choose. Notwithstanding subdivision (c)
of Section 500, the menu of work schedule options may include a
regular schedule of eight-hour days that are compensated in
accordance with subdivision (a) of Section 510. Employees who
adopt a menu of work schedule options may, with employer
consent, move from one schedule option to another on a weekly
basis.

(b) An affected employee working longer than eight begin delete hours end delete begin insert hours, end insert
but not more than 12 hours in a begin delete day end delete begin insert day, end insert pursuant to an alternative
workweek schedule adopted pursuant to this section shall be paid
an overtime rate of compensation of no less than one and one-half
times the regular rate of pay of the employee for any work in excess
of the regularly scheduled hours established by the alternative
workweek agreement and for any work in excess of 40 hours per
week. An overtime rate of compensation of no less than double
the regular rate of pay of the employee shall be paid for any work
in excess of 12 hours per day and for any work in excess of eight
hours on those days worked beyond the regularly scheduled
workdays established by the alternative workweek agreement.
Nothing in this section requires an employer to combine more than
one rate of overtime compensation in order to calculate the amount
to be paid to an employee for any hour of overtime work.

(c) An employer shall not reduce an employee’s regular rate of
hourly pay as a result of the adoption, repeal, or nullification of
an alternative workweek schedule.

(d) An employer shall make a reasonable effort to find a work
schedule not to exceed eight hours in a workday, in order to
accommodate any affected employee who was eligible to vote in
an election authorized by this section and begin delete who end delete is unable to work
the alternative schedule hours established as the result of that
election. An employer shall be permitted to provide a work
schedule not to exceed eight hours in a workday to accommodate
any employee who was hired after the date of the election and who
is unable to work the alternative schedule established as the result
of that election. An employer shall explore any available reasonable
alternative means of accommodating the religious belief or
observance of an affected employee that conflicts with an adopted
alternative workweek schedule, in the manner provided by
subdivision (j) of Section 12940 of the Government Code.

(e) The results of any election conducted pursuant to this section
shall be reported by an employer to the Division of Labor Standards
Enforcement within 30 days after the results are final.

(f) Any type of alternative workweek schedule that is authorized
by this code and that was in effect on January 1, 2000, may be
repealed by the affected employees pursuant to this section. Any
alternative workweek schedule that was adopted pursuant to Wage
Order Number 1, 4, 5, 7, or 9 of the Industrial Welfare Commission
is null and void, except for an alternative workweek providing for
a regular schedule of no more than 10 hours’ work in a workday
that was adopted by a two-thirds vote of affected employees in a
secret ballot election pursuant to wage orders of the Industrial
Welfare Commission in effect prior to 1998. This subdivision does
not apply to exemptions authorized pursuant to Section 515.

(g) Notwithstanding subdivision (f), an alternative workweek
schedule in the health care industry adopted by a two-thirds vote
of affected employees in a secret ballot election pursuant to Wage
Order Numbers 4 and 5 in effect prior to begin delete 1998 end delete begin insert 1998, end insert that provided
for workdays exceeding 10 hours but not exceeding 12 hours in a
day without the payment of overtime begin delete compensation end delete begin insert compensation, end insert
shall be valid until July 1, 2000. An employer in the health care
industry shall make a reasonable effort to accommodate any
employee in the health care industry who is unable to work the
alternative schedule established as the result of a valid election
held in accordance with provisions of Wage Order Number 4 or
5 that were in effect prior to 1998.

(h) Notwithstanding subdivision (f), if an employee is
voluntarily working an alternative workweek schedule providing
for a regular work schedule of not more than 10 hours’ work in a
workday as of July 1, 1999, an employee may continue to work
that alternative workweek schedule without the entitlement of the
payment of daily overtime compensation for the hours provided
in that schedule if the employer approves a written request of the
employee to work that schedule.

(i) For purposes of this section, “work unit” includes a division,
a department, a job classification, a shift, a separate physical
location, or a recognized subdivision thereof. A work unit may
consist of an individual employee as long as the criteria for an
identifiable work unit in this section is met.