BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
Date of Hearing: June 11, 2014 2013-2014 Regular
Session
Consultant: Deanna D. Ping Fiscal:Yes
Urgency: No
Bill No: AB 1562
Author: Gomez
As Amended: April 1, 2014
SUBJECT
Employment: leave.
KEY ISSUE
Should the legislature expand the California Family Rights Act
to allow public or private school employees the opportunity to
take unpaid family and medical leave if the employee has worked
at least 60 percent of a position considered full time during
the school year?
ANALYSIS
Existing law authorizes eligible employees to take up to 12
weeks of unpaid family and medical leave, including leave for
the birth or adoption of a child, leave to care for specified
family members with a serious health condition, or for the
employee's own serious health condition.
Existing law specifies that an employee must have more than 12
months of service with the employer and at least 1,250 hours of
service with the employer during the previous 12-month period,
in order to be eligible to take unpaid family and medical leave.
Existing law provides that an employer may refuse to reinstate
an employee returning from leave to the same or a comparable
position if all of the following apply:
a) The employee is a salaried employee who is among the
highest paid 10 percent of the employer's employees.
b) The refusal is necessary to prevent substantial and
grievous economic injury to the operations of the employer.
c) The employer notifies the employee of the intent to
refuse to reinstate at the time the employer determines
that the refusal is necessary.
This Bill amends existing law governing unpaid family and
medical leave with respect to public or private school
employees, as specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides that for eligibility purposes, during the previous
12-month period, a public or private school employee must have
served at least 60 percent of a the hours of service that an
employee who is employed full time is required to perform in a
school year, in addition to other existing requirements.
2)Provides that an existing provision of law that allows an
employer to refuse to reinstate an employee returning from
leave under certain circumstances does not apply to public or
private school employees.
COMMENTS
1. Need for this bill?
The Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the
state-law equivalent of the federal Family and Medical Leave
Act (FMLA). Both acts provide for up to 12 weeks of unpaid
family and medical leave for public and private employees.
Under the CFRA, there are two main eligibility criteria.
First, the employee must have worked for the employer for more
than 12 months. Second, the employee must have worked more
than 1,250 hours for the employer during the prior 12-month
period.
Full-time employees generally have no problem satisfying the
hours of service requirement, because a regular
Hearing Date: June 11, 2014 AB 1562
Consultant: Deanna D. Ping Page 2
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
(40-hours-per-week) full-time employee works 2,080 hours in a
12-month period. The 1,250 hour threshold under the CFRA
generally represents 60 percent of a full-time schedule.
Therefore, part-time workers may be eligible for leave under
the CFRA as long as they generally work about 60 percent of a
full-time schedule. A part-time employee would have to work
about 24 hours per week in order to reach the hours of service
needed for eligibility under the CFRA.
The sponsor of this bill, the California Teachers Association
(CTA), notes that many educators and other public and private
school employees are not covered by the CFRA because they do
not meet the hours of service requirement due to the length of
the school year. For example, a full-time teacher or other
school employee who works for 182 days and 7.25 hours per day
would have 1,320 hours of service in a calendar year, and
would therefore be eligible for leave under the CFRA.
However, a part-time teacher of other school employee would
have to work 95 percent of a full-time schedule in order to
reach the minimum hours of service. Part-time employees who
work less than that amount are not eligible for leave.
AB 1562 would cover employees who work 60 percent of full-time
schedule, allowing more private or public school employees to
take 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave.
2. Proponent Arguments :
Proponents argue that all educational employees should have
the right to family care leave. Proponents contend that the
unique nature of California's educators illustrates the need
for special consideration, especially noting that a part-time
teacher would have to work 95 percent of the school year to
reach the 1,250 hours requirement and be protected by the CFRA
whereas by comparison, a part-time non-teacher need only work
60 percent of the work year to be covered by the law.
Proponents argue that this scenario is unfair and illustrates
the need for this important legislation.
3. Opponent Arguments :
Hearing Date: June 11, 2014 AB 1562
Consultant: Deanna D. Ping Page 3
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations
None on file.
4. Prior Legislation :
SB 193 (Marks), Chapter 580, Statutes of 1993 - created the
California Family Rights Act (CFRA), also known as the
Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act.
SUPPORT
California Teachers Association (Co-Sponsor)
California Employment Lawyers Association
California School Employees Association, AFL-CIO
OPPOSITION
None on file.
Hearing Date: June 11, 2014 AB 1562
Consultant: Deanna D. Ping Page 4
Senate Committee on Labor and Industrial Relations