BILL NUMBER: AB 1562	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Committee on Labor and Employment (Monning (Chair),
Eng, Furutani, Ma, and Portantino)

                        MARCH 11, 2009

   An act to amend Section 2929 of the Labor Code, relating to
employment.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1562, as introduced, Committee on Labor and Employment.
Employment: garnishment of wages.
   Under existing law, an employer may not terminate an employee
because garnishment of an employee's wages has been threatened or an
employee's wages have been subjected to garnishment for the payment
of one judgment.
   This bill would prohibit an employer from terminating an employee
because garnishment of the employee's wages has been threatened or
the employee's wages have been subjected to garnishment for the
payment of 5 or fewer judgments at any one time.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 2929 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
   2929.  (a) As used in this section:
   (1) "Garnishment" means  any   a 
judicial procedure through which the wages of an employee are
required to be withheld for the payment of  any 
 a  debt.
   (2) "Wages" has the same meaning as that term has under Section
200.
   (b)  No   An  employer  may
  shall not  discharge  any  
an  employee by reason of the fact that the garnishment of
 his   the employee's  wages has been
threatened.  No   An  employer  may
  shall not  discharge  any  
an  employee by reason of the fact that  his 
 the employee's  wages have been subjected to garnishment
for the payment of  one judgment   five or fewer
judgments at any one time  . A provision of a contract of
employment that provides an employee with less protection than is
provided by this subdivision is against public policy and void.
   (c) Unless the employee has greater rights under the contract of
employment, the wages of an employee who is discharged in violation
of this section shall continue until reinstatement notwithstanding
 such   his or her  discharge, but 
such   the employee's  wages shall not continue
for more than 30 days and shall not exceed the amount of wages earned
during the 30 calendar days immediately preceding the date of the
levy of execution upon the employee's wages which resulted in his
 or her  discharge. The employee shall give notice to his
 or her  employer of his  or her  intention to make
a wage claim under this subdivision within 30 days after being
discharged; and, if  he   the employee 
desires to have the Labor Commissioner take an assignment of his 
or her  wage claim, the employee shall file a wage claim with
the Labor Commissioner within 60 days after being discharged. The
Labor Commissioner may  , in his discretion,  take
assignment of wage claims under this subdivision as provided for in
Section 96. A discharged employee shall not  be permitted to
 recover wages under this subdivision if a criminal
prosecution based on the same discharge has been commenced for
violation of Section 304 of the Consumer Credit Protection Act of
1968 (15 U.S.C. Sec. 1674).
   (d) Nothing in this section affects any other  rights
  right  the employee may have against his  or
her  employer.
   (e) This section is intended to aid in the enforcement of the
prohibition against discharge for garnishment of earnings provided in
the Consumer Credit Protection Act of 1968 (15 U.S.C. Secs.
1671-1677) and shall be interpreted and applied in a manner which is
consistent with the corresponding provisions of  such
  that  act.