BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






          SENATE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT & RETIREMENT    BILL NO:  SB 318
          Gloria Negrete McLeod, Chair                              
          Hearing date:  March 21, 2011
          SB 318 (De León)    as introduced  2/14/11    FISCAL:  NO

           WOULD GRANT RIGHTS OF APPEAL TO MEMBERS OF BARGAINING UNIT 5
          

          HISTORY  :

              Sponsor:  California Association of Highway Patrolmen 
          (CAHP)

              Prior legislation:  AB 3042 (Assembly PER&SS Committee)
                         Chapter 150, Statutes of 2008

           
          SUMMARY  : 

          Would allow rank and file California Highway Patrol (CHP) 
          officers and cadets to have appeal rights before the State 
          Personnel Board (SPB) during the probationary period.


           BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS  : 
          
           1)Existing law  :

             a)   requires a probationary period when an employee 
               enters civil service, under limited circumstances;

             b)   defines "probationer" as an employee who has a 
               probationary status;

             c)   defines "probationary status" as the status of an 
               employee who has been certified and appointed from an 
               employment list, or has been reinstated after 
               resignation, or has been transferred or demoted but has 
               not completed the probationary period, as specified;

             d)   provides that tenure of civil service employment is 
               subject to good behavior, efficiency, the necessity of 
               the performance of the work, and the appropriation of 
          Michael Bolden
          Date:  3/15/11                                         Page 1 










               sufficient funds;

             e)   allows rejection of an employee during the 
               probationary period by the appointing power for reasons 
               relating to the probationer's qualifications; the good 
               of the service; and failure to demonstrate merit, 
               efficiency, fitness and moral responsibility;

             f)   allows the SPB to investigate the reasons for 
               rejection at the request of a rejected probationer, and 
               either affirm or modify the action of the appointing 
               power, including restoring the rejected probationer to 
               the position from which he or she was rejected, and

             g)   exempts state employees in Bargaining Unit 5 
               (California Association of Highway Patrolmen) from the 
               right to appeal a rejection while on probation.

           1)This bill  :

             a)   would remove the current exemption and allow rank and 
               file CHP officers and cadets to have the same rights 
               that apply to other state employees to appeal a 
               rejection before the SPB during the probationary period.


           COMMENTS  :

          Currently, newly hired cadets and officers in Bargaining Unit 
          5 do not have probationer rights of appeal, while other 
          current employees in Bargaining Unit 5 (i.e., uniformed 
          officers, and non-uniformed employees of the CHP) who have 
          passed the initial-hire probationary status, but have since 
          been promoted, have rights of appeal during the probationary 
          period of a promotion.
           
           1)Arguments in support  

          According to the author:

            "These appeal rights protect employees from unlawful 
            termination especially during their probationary period.  
            The men and women of the CHP are not afforded this basic 
          Michael Bolden
          Date:  3/15/11                                         Page 2 










            employment right and as a result are often left defenseless 
            especially in cases when dismissal could arise due to 
            discriminatory reasons."

          According to the sponsor:

            "Bargaining Unit 5 members are the only employees in state 
            government who do not have appeal rights for a 'rejection 
            during probation.'  Uniformed CHP officers at other ranks, 
            who promote and are rejected during probation from their 
            new class, have appeal rights; non-uniformed employees of 
            the CHP have appeal rights; employees in all twenty of the 
            other bargaining units in state government have appeal 
            rights, as do their associated supervisory and management 
            classes."


          2)   SUPPORT  :

               California Association of Highway Patrolmen (CAHP), 
          sponsor


          3)   OPPOSITION  :

               None to date

          
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          Michael Bolden
          Date:  3/15/11                                         Page 3