BILL NUMBER: SB 1353 CHAPTERED 08/25/00 CHAPTER 244 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE AUGUST 25, 2000 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR AUGUST 24, 2000 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 7, 2000 PASSED THE SENATE MAY 24, 2000 AMENDED IN SENATE FEBRUARY 23, 2000 INTRODUCED BY Senator Rainey JANUARY 13, 2000 An act to amend Section 230.3 of the Labor Code, relating to employees. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1353, Rainey. Employees: reserve peace officers and emergency rescue personnel. (1) Existing law provides that no employer shall discharge or in any manner discriminate against an employee for taking time off to perform emergency duty as a volunteer firefighter. Existing law further provides that any employee who is discharged, threatened with discharge, demoted, suspended, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment by his or her employer because of taking time off to perform emergency duty as a volunteer firefighter is entitled to be reinstated and reimbursed, as specified. Under existing law, any employer who willfully refuses to rehire, promote, or otherwise restore an employee, as specified, is guilty of a misdemeanor. This bill would extend those protections to reserve peace officers and emergency rescue personnel, as defined. By expanding the scope of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) 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. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 230.3 of the Labor Code is amended to read: 230.3. (a) No employer shall discharge or in any manner discriminate against an employee for taking time off to perform emergency duty as a volunteer firefighter, a reserve peace officer, or emergency rescue personnel. (b) Any employee who is discharged, threatened with discharge, demoted, suspended, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment by his or her employer because the employee has taken time off to perform emergency duty as a volunteer firefighter, a reserve peace officer, or emergency rescue personnel shall be entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by the acts of the employer. Any employer who willfully refuses to rehire, promote, or otherwise restore an employee or former employee who has been determined to be eligible for rehiring or promotion by a grievance procedure, arbitration, or hearing authorized by law, is guilty of a misdemeanor. (c) Subdivisions (a) and (b) of this section shall not apply to any public safety agency or provider of emergency medical services when, as determined by the employer, the employee's absence would hinder the availability of public safety or emergency medical services. (d) (1) For purposes of this section, "volunteer firefighter" shall have the same meaning as the term "volunteer" in subdivision (m) of Section 50952 of the Government Code. (2) For purposes of this section, "emergency rescue personnel" means any person who is an officer, employee, or member of a fire department or fire protection or firefighting agency of the federal government, the State of California, a city, county, city and county, district, or other public or municipal corporation or political subdivision of this state, or of a sheriff's department, police department, or a private fire department, whether that person is a volunteer or partly paid or fully paid, while he or she is actually engaged in providing emergency services as defined by subdivision (e) of Section 1799.107 of the Health and Safety Code. SEC. 2. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIIIB 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 XIIIB of the California Constitution.