BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 1429
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   May 6, 2009

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Kevin De Leon, Chair

                    AB 1429 (Evans) - As Amended:  April 14, 2009 

          Policy Committee:                              P.E.R. &  
          S.S.Vote:    4-2

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill provides managerial employees the right to meet and  
          confer with their employer on matters relating to employee  
          compensation, including hours, benefits, and wages.  
          Specifically, the bill:

          1)Defines "meet and confer" to mean that, before determining a  
            policy affecting compensation of managerial employees, the  
            state will consider as fully as it deems reasonable any  
            presentation made by the organization representing managerial  
            employees.

          2)Specifies that the final decision regarding managerial  
            compensation will be the sole responsibility of the state.

          3)Specifies that the provisions do not apply to managerial  
            employees within the Department of Personnel Administration  
            (DPA).

           FISCAL EFFECT

           1)The Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) indicates  
            that the expanded meet and confer rights would require at  
            least two additional negotiator positions, at an annual cost  
            of $200,000. 

           2)Cost pressure, potentially in the millions of dollars, to the  
            extent enhanced meet and confer rights result in compensation  
            increases for managers.  

          COMMENTS








                                                                 AB 1429
                                                                  Page  2


          1)Background  . Existing law establishes the Bill of Rights for  
            State Excluded Employees, requiring the state to meet and  
            confer upon request with representatives of supervisory  
            employees on policies or actions affecting the supervisory  
            employees. The same meet-and-confer rights are not granted to  
            higher-level managerial employees. According to DPA, the  
            rationale for this is that inclusion of higher-level  
            management would create an inherent conflict to the extent  
            that the higher level managers are responsible for carrying  
            out state personnel policies.
           
          2)Purpose  . According to the author, the bill is intended to  
            address an inequity where a manager promoted from rank and  
            file may earn less than individuals he or she manages.  The  
            author claims that "as an excluded employee, the manager has  
            fewer rights than the individuals he or she manages and, in  
            fact, does not have rights equal to the supervisory employees  
            with his or her office. As a result, managerial employees have  
            experienced increased workload, higher supervisory ratios, and  
            fewer pay increases than the employees they supervise."

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Brad Williams / APPR. / (916) 319-2081