BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT & RETIREMENT BILL NO: AB 649
Deborah V. Ortiz, Chair Hearing date: July 12, 1999
AB 649 (Floyd) as introduced 2/23/99 FISCAL: YES
STATE EMPLOYEES: OVERTIME PAY
HISTORY :
Sponsor: International Union of Operating Engineers
(IUOE)
Prior legislation: AB 2522 (Asm. Labor and Employment
Committee) 1998
Vetoed
ASSEMBLY VOTES :
Labor & Employment 8 - 14/21/99
Appropriations 15 - 0 5/12/99
Assembly Floor 65 - 105/20/99
SUMMARY :
Would require state agency employers to make payment of
overtime wages no later than the payday for the next regular
payroll period.
BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS :
1) Existing law :
a) requires wages earned for labor in excess of the normal
work period to be paid no later than the payday for the
next regular payroll period,
b) requires employers, in the event of a dispute over
wages, to pay the undisputed portion,
c) requires the Labor Commissioner to inquire diligently
for violations of these requirements,
d) requires an employer to pay a wage claim within 10 days
after receipt of notice, following an investigation and
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hearing, when the Labor Commissioner has determined that
the wages are due,
e) provides that an employer who willfully fails to pay
the wages within the 10-day period is liable for treble
damages to the employee, and
f) excludes from these provisions employees of the state,
counties or municipalities.
2) This bill :
a) requires state agency employers to make payment of
wages earned, for labor in excess of the normal work
period, no later than the payday for the next regular
payroll period, and
b) requires the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement
(Labor Commissioner) to investigate violations and would
require the state agency to pay any claim for those wages
that the Labor Commissioner finds to be due, following an
investigation and hearing, within 10 days after receiving
the Labor Commissioner's ruling, subject to treble damages
for willful failure to do so.
FISCAL EFFECT :
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee analysis,
the Department of Industrial Relations states that this bill
would result in minor costs to state agencies, less than
$100,000 annually, since few claims would be filed against
the state for delayed overtime payments. Any claims filed
against state agencies would likely be due to administrative
problems, rather than willful neglect, and would not result
in treble damages. Additionally, the Labor Commissioner
likely would defer claims to the U.S. Department of Labor,
which has jurisdiction over the Fair Labor Standards Act
(FLSA), which regulates overtime provisions for state
employees.
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COMMENTS :
1) The committee is advised that AB 2522 (Labor and
Employment Committee) 1998, a similar bill, was vetoed by
Governor Pete Wilson. His veto message stated:
"This bill would subject the state to specific provisions
of the Labor Code governing the payment of overtime wages.
This bill would also authorize the Department of Industrial
Relations, Division of Labor Standards Enforcement to
investigate violations of those provisions.
Current law exempts the state from the application of
specified provisions of the Labor Code regarding the
payment of overtime wages. Overtime pay is required,
however, by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Overtime
pay provisions are also contained in collective bargaining
agreements. The appropriate agency for the enforcement of
overtime pay requirements under the FLSA is the United
States Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division, not the
state Labor Commissioner's Office.
This bill unnecessarily creates conflicting authorities and
duplicates existing remedies for the enforcement of
overtime pay. In the event of overtime wage disputes,
state employees may take advantage of remedies already
available under the FLSA or through the grievance
procedures provided in their collective bargaining
agreements. The legislative creation of multiple
overlapping enforcement options is not the answer."
2) Proponents :
The Operating Engineers, sponsor of this legislation, points
out that many state workers who are called to work an
alternative work schedule or during an emergency situation do
not receive their separate overtime check for this work until
many months later; sometimes this payment is said to take
almost a year.
3) SUPPORT :
California Union of Safety Employees (CAUSE)
California Correctional Supervisors Organization (CCSO)
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California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO
4) OPPOSITION :
None to date.
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