Bill Text: CA AB2114 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act: procedures relating to employee termination or discipline.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2020-08-29 - Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 22. Noes 12. Page 4433.). [AB2114 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB2114-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  March 10, 2020

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 2114

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Introduced by Assembly Member Rodriguez

February 06, 2020

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An act to amend Section 3597 of add Section 3571.5 to the Government Code, relating to higher education employment relations.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2114, as amended, Rodriguez. Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act: student representatives. procedures relating to employee termination or discipline.

Existing law, the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act, provides for negotiations concerning wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment between a higher education employer, defined as the Regents of the University of California, the Board of Directors of the Hastings College of the Law, and the Trustees of the California State University, and representatives of recognized employee organizations. Existing law requires a student representative to be notified in writing by the higher education employer and the employee organizations representing student service or academic personnel of the issues under discussion in all meetings and conferring between higher education employers and those employee organizations, authorizes the student representative to attend and comment in those meetings, and sets forth rules applicable to the involvement of the student representative, as provided.

This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to the provisions relating to the student representative.

This bill would require a higher education employer to provide a procedure for all nonprobationary employees who are not members of the academic senate to challenge a termination of employment or a disciplinary action by the employer, as provided. The bill would prohibit the application of that procedure to a termination of employment or disciplinary action based on certain academic or clinical matters, as defined.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 3571.5 is added to the Government Code, to read:

3571.5.

 (a) (1) A higher education employer shall provide a procedure for all nonprobationary employees who are not members of the academic senate to challenge a termination of employment or a disciplinary action by the employer.

(2) A challenge by an employee pursuant to this section shall be heard by an impartial hearing officer or arbitrator who shall have the power to review the employer’s action and provide a full remedy for termination or discipline without just cause. If the employee is represented by an exclusive representative, the impartial hearing officer or arbitrator shall be jointly selected by the higher education employer and exclusive representative.

(3) If there is a memorandum of understanding between a higher education employer and an exclusive representative that provides a procedure for the employee or employee’s representative to challenge a termination of employment or a disciplinary action before a neutral decisionmaker, the provisions of the memorandum of understanding providing for that procedure shall control over the requirements of this section.

(b) This section shall not apply to a termination of employment or disciplinary action based on those academic or clinical matters that are excluded from the scope of representation. For purposes of this section, “academic or clinical matters” means those matters that relate to an employee’s acquisition of core competencies and the development of the clinical skills necessary to function at the level of the employee’s credential in an academic discipline or medical specialty.

SECTION 1.Section 3597 of the Government Code is amended to read:

3597.

(a)Subject to the provisions of subdivision (d), in all meeting and conferring between higher education employers and employee organizations representing student service or academic personnel, a student representative shall have the right to be notified in writing by the employer and the employee organizations of the issues under discussion. A student representative shall have the right to be present and comment at reasonable times during meeting and conferring between the employer and the employee organizations.

(b)The student representative shall be provided access to all documents exchanged between the parties pertaining to the meeting and conferring and shall have the right to have an aide present during all meetings. In the case of mediation of impasses, the student representative shall have an opportunity at reasonable times to comment to the mediator on impasse issues. The student representative shall be free from coercion or reprisals in the exercise of the student representative’s rights as set forth in this section.

(c)The student representative shall respect and maintain the rules governing confidentiality as they pertain to all parties involved in the meeting and conferring. Violations of this subdivision shall result in the termination of student involvement for the remainder of the meeting and conferring, and any other remedy, if any, deemed appropriate by the board.

(d)For purposes of this section, a student representative shall be designated by the official student body association, if any, of the higher education employer, or segment thereof, engaged in meeting and conferring. If no student body association exists, the students may elect and designate a representative for the purposes of this section.