Bill Text: CA AB2751 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended

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

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Bill Title: Retaliation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-06-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 79, Statutes of 2014. [AB2751 Detail]

Download: California-2013-AB2751-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 2751	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 28, 2014

INTRODUCED BY    Committee on Labor and Employment 
 (   Roger Hernández (Chair), Alejo, Chau,
Gomez, and Holden   )   Assembly Member
  Roger  Hernández 

                        MARCH 13, 2014

   An act to amend Section 1019 of the Labor Code, relating to
employment.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2751, as amended,  Committee on Labor and Employment
  Roger  Hernández  . Retaliation: unfair
immigration-related practices: suspension of business licenses.
   Existing law prohibits an employer or any other person from
engaging in, or directing another person to engage in, an unfair
immigration-related practice  , as defined,  against
a person for the purpose of, or with the intent of, retaliating
against any person for exercising a right protected under state labor
and employment laws or under a local ordinance applicable to
employees, as specified.  Existing law defines unfair
immigration-related practice to include, among other things,
threatening to file or filing a false police report.  Existing
law creates a rebuttable presumption that an adverse action taken
within 90 days of the exercising of a protected right is committed
for the purpose of, or with the intent of, retaliation. Existing law
authorizes a civil action  for equitable relief and damages or
penalties, as specified,  by an employee or other person who is
the subject of an unfair immigration-related practice. Existing law
also authorizes a court to order the appropriate government agencies
to suspend certain business licenses held by the violating party for
prescribed periods based on the number of violations, and requires
the court to consider specified circumstances in determining whether
a suspension of all licenses is appropriate. 
   This bill would include in the definition of unfair
immigration-related practice the threatening to file or the filing of
a false report or complaint with any state or federal agency. The
bill would authorize a civil action for equitable relief and any
applicable damages or penalties by an employee or other person who is
the subject of an unfair immigration-related practice. The bill
would further authorize a court to order, upon application by a party
or on its own motion, the appropriate government agencies to suspend
certain business licenses held by the violating party for prescribed
periods based on the number of violations. 
   This bill would  also  make technical, nonsubstantive
changes to these provisions.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 1019 of the Labor Code is amended to read:
   1019.  (a) It shall be unlawful for an employer or any other
person or entity to engage in, or to direct another person or entity
to engage in, unfair immigration-related practices against any person
for the purpose of, or with the intent of, retaliating against any
person for exercising any right protected under this code or by any
local ordinance applicable to employees. Exercising a right protected
by this code or local ordinance includes the following:
   (1) Filing a complaint or informing any person of an employer's or
other party's alleged violation of this code or local ordinance, so
long as the complaint or disclosure is made in good faith.
   (2) Seeking information regarding whether an employer or other
party is in compliance with this code or local ordinance.
   (3) Informing a person of his or her potential rights and remedies
under this code or local ordinance, and assisting him or her in
asserting those rights.
   (b) (1) As used in this chapter, "unfair immigration-related
practice" means any of the following practices, when undertaken for
the retaliatory purposes prohibited by subdivision (a):
   (A) Requesting more or different documents than are required under
Section 1324a(b) of Title 8 of the United States Code, or a refusal
to honor documents tendered pursuant to that section that on their
face reasonably appear to be genuine.
   (B) Using the federal E-Verify system to check the employment
authorization status of a person at a time or in a manner not
required under Section 1324a(b) of Title 8 of the United States Code,
or not authorized under any memorandum of understanding governing
the use of the federal E-Verify system.
   (C) Threatening to file or the filing of a false police report
 , or a false report or complaint with any state or federal
agency  .
   (D) Threatening to contact or contacting immigration authorities.
   (2) "Unfair immigration-related practice" does not include conduct
undertaken at the express and specific direction or request of the
federal government.
   (c) Engaging in an unfair immigration-related practice against a
person within 90 days of the person's exercise of rights protected
under this code or local ordinance applicable to employees shall
raise a rebuttable presumption of having done so in retaliation for
the exercise of those rights.
   (d) (1) An employee or other person who is the subject of an
unfair immigration-related practice prohibited by this section, or a
representative of that employee or person, may bring a civil action
for equitable relief and any  applicable  damages or
penalties  , in accordance with this section  .
   (2) Upon a finding by a court of applicable jurisdiction of a
violation this section  , upon application by a party or on its
own motion, a court may do the following  :
   (A) For a first violation,  the court in its discretion,
may  order the appropriate government agencies to suspend
all licenses  subject to this chapter  that are held
by the violating party for a period of up to 14 days.  For
the purposes of this paragraph, the licenses that are subject to
suspension are all licenses held by the violating party specific to
the business location or locations where the unfair
immigration-related practice occurred. In determining whether a
suspension of all licenses is appropriate, the court shall consider
whether the employer knowingly committed an unfair immigration
practice, the good faith efforts of the employer to resolve any
alleged unfair immigration related practice after receiving notice of
the violations, as well as the harm other employees of the employer,
or employees of other employers on a multiemployer job site, will
suffer as a result of the suspension of all licenses.  On
receipt of the court's order and notwithstanding any other law, the
appropriate agencies shall suspend the licenses according to the
court's order.
   (B) For a second violation,  the court, in its discretion,
may  order the appropriate government agencies to suspend
all licenses that are held by the violating party  specific
to the business location or locations where the unfair
immigration-related practice occurred,  for a period of up
to 30 days.  In determining whether a suspension of all
licenses is appropriate, the court shall consider whether the
employer knowingly committed an unfair immigration practice, the good
faith efforts of the employer to resolve any alleged unfair
immigration related practice after receiving notice of the
violations, as well as the harm other employees of the employer, or
employees of other employers on a multiemployer job site, will suffer
as a result of the suspension of all licenses.  On receipt
of the court's order and notwithstanding any other law, the
appropriate agencies shall immediately suspend the licenses.
   (C) For a third or subsequent violation,  the court, in
its discretion, may  order the appropriate government
agencies to suspend for a period of up to 90 days all licenses that
are held by the violating party specific to the business
location or locations where the unfair immigration-related practice
occurred. In determining whether a suspension of all licenses is
appropriate, the court shall consider whether the employer knowingly
committed an unfair immigration practice, the good faith efforts of
the employer to resolve any alleged unfair immigration related
practice after receiving notice of the violations, as well as the
harm other employees of the employer, or employees of other employers
on a multiemployer job site, will suffer as a result of the
suspension of all licenses  . On receipt of the court's
order and notwithstanding any other law, the appropriate agencies
shall immediately suspend the licenses. 
   (3) In determining whether a suspension of all licenses is
appropriate under this subdivision, the court shall consider whether
the employer knowingly committed an unfair immigration-related
practice, the good faith efforts of the employer to resolve any
alleged unfair immigration-related practice after receiving notice of
the violations, as well as the harm other employees of the employer,
or employees of other employers on a multiemployer job site, will
suffer as a result of the suspension of all licenses.  
   (3) 
    (4)  An employee or other person who is the subject of
an unfair  immigration-document  
immigration-related  practice prohibited by this section, and
who prevails in an action authorized by this section, shall recover
 its   his or her  reasonable attorney's
fees and costs, including any expert witness costs.
   (e) As used in this chapter:
   (1) "License" means any agency permit, certificate, approval,
registration, or charter that is required by law and that is issued
by any agency for the purposes of operating a business in this state
 and that is   specific to the business location or
locations where the unfair immigration-related practice occurred
 . "License" does not include a professional license.
   (2) "Violation" means each incident when an unfair 
immigration   immigration-related  practice was
committed, without reference to the number of employees involved in
the incident.