BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1443
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 1443 (Skinner)
As Amended June 16, 2014
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |78-0 |(May 15, 2014) |SENATE: |35-0 |(July 3, 2014) |
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Original Committee Reference: L. & E.
SUMMARY : Extends certain employment discrimination and
harassment provisions of the Fair Employment and Housing Act
(FEHA) to unpaid interns.
The Senate amendments add coauthors and make technical and
conforming changes.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that it is unlawful for any person to discriminate
against any person in the selection or training of that person
in any apprenticeship training program or any other training
program leading to employment because of the race, religious
creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability,
mental disability, medical condition, genetic information,
marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender
expression, age, sexual orientation, or military and veteran
status of the person discriminated against.
2)Provides that it is unlawful for an employer, labor
organization, employment agency, apprenticeship training
program or any training program leading to employment, or any
other person, because of race, religious creed, color,
national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental
disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital
status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age,
sexual orientation, or military and veteran status, to harass
an employee, an applicant, or a person providing services
pursuant to a contract.
3)Provides that harassment of an employee, an applicant, or a
person providing services pursuant to a contract by an
employee, other than an agent or supervisor, shall be unlawful
if the entity, or its agents or supervisors, knows or should
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have known of this conduct and fails to take immediate and
appropriate corrective action.
4)Provides that an employer may also be responsible for the acts
of nonemployees, with respect to sexual harassment of
employees, applicants, or persons providing services pursuant
to a contract in the workplace, where the employer, or its
agents or supervisors, knows or should have known of the
conduct and fails to take immediate and appropriate corrective
action.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Expanded discrimination protections for apprentices in
termination or other terms or treatment of that apprentice in
an apprenticeship training program.
2)Expanded discrimination protections to cover a person in an
unpaid internship, or any other program to provide unpaid
experience for that person in the workplace or industry.
3)Prohibited harassment by an employer of an unpaid intern or
volunteer.
4)Extended religious belief discrimination protection and
accommodation requirements to an individual in an
apprenticeship training program, an unpaid internship, and any
other program to provide unpaid experience for a person in the
workplace or industry.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : Existing state law (FEHA) already provides
protections for employees, applicants, and specified contractors
against unlawful discrimination and harassment. This bill would
generally extend these provisions of FEHA to include protections
for unpaid interns and volunteers, and makes additional
clarifying changes to existing law. The author argues that this
bill is necessary because neither federal nor state law
explicitly protects unpaid interns from harassment or
discrimination.
Supporters argue that many interns work alongside and undertake
the same duties as their employed counterparts. They are
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subjected to similar treatment from supervisors and exposed to
the same workplace environment as those employed by the
companies and organizations for which they intern. Moreover,
several professional graduate programs require or at least
typically include some type of internship placement before
completion, including social work, law, education and nursing.
There is no opposition on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Ben Ebbink / L. & E. / (916) 319-2091
FN: 0004168