By: Eckhardt, et al. S.B. No. 69
 
 
 
   
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to paid rest breaks for construction employees of
  construction contractors and subcontractors; providing an
  administrative penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subtitle D, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by
  adding Chapter 83 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 83. PAID REST BREAKS FOR CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYEES
         Sec. 83.001.  DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
               (1)  "Commission" means the Texas Workforce
  Commission.
               (2)  "Construction employee" means an individual paid
  by a construction employer to perform general construction work or
  services.
               (3)  "Construction employer" means a contractor or
  subcontractor who employs one or more construction employees in
  this state.
               (4)  "Contractor" means a person, firm, or corporation
  contracting for general construction.
               (5)  "General construction" means the:
                     (A)  erection of or preparation to erect a
  structure;
                     (B)  remodeling, extension, repair, or demolition
  of a structure; or
                     (C)  other improvement of real property or a
  structure related to real property.
               (6)  "Rest break" means a break from work during work
  hours. The term does not include a regular meal break period
  provided to a construction employee by a construction employer.
               (7)  "Subcontractor" means a person, firm, or
  corporation contracting with a contractor for general
  construction.
         Sec. 83.002.  PAID REST BREAKS REQUIRED. (a) A construction
  employer shall provide at least a 15-minute paid rest break for
  every four hours of work to each construction employee.
         (b)  The construction employer may not require the paid rest
  break to be taken as part of a separate meal break.
         Sec. 83.003.  NOTICE TO CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYEES. (a) Each
  construction employer shall, at the time of hiring, provide notice
  in both English and Spanish to each construction employee:
               (1)  of the employee's entitlement to paid rest breaks
  under this chapter;
               (2)  that retaliation by the employer against the
  employee for requesting or taking paid rest breaks to which the
  employee is entitled under this chapter is prohibited; and
               (3)  that the employee has a right to file a complaint
  with the commission for any violation of this chapter.
         (b)  A construction employer may comply with this section by
  displaying a poster in a conspicuous place, accessible to
  construction employees, at the employer's place of business and at
  the applicable construction work site that contains the information
  required by this section in both English and Spanish.
         (c)  The commission by rule shall prescribe the design and
  content of the sign described by Subsection (b).
         Sec. 83.004.  RETALIATION PROHIBITED. A construction
  employer may not take retaliatory personnel action or otherwise
  discriminate against a construction employee because the employee:
               (1)  requests or takes paid rest breaks in accordance
  with this chapter; or
               (2)  files a complaint with the commission alleging the
  employer's violation of this chapter.
         Sec. 83.005.  COMPLAINT; HEARING; PENALTY. (a) Any
  construction employee aggrieved by a violation of this chapter may
  file a claim with the commission in the manner prescribed by
  Subchapter D, Chapter 61. Except as otherwise provided by this
  chapter, the commission shall investigate and dispose of the
  complaint in the same manner as a wage claim under Subchapter D,
  Chapter 61.
         (b)  A construction employer that violates any applicable
  requirement of this chapter must be provided with an opportunity to
  correct the violation under Subsection (d).
         (c)  The commission shall notify the construction employer
  if the commission determines that the employer has violated this
  chapter.
         (d)  If the construction employer corrects the violation not
  later than the 30th business day after the date the employer
  receives notice under Subsection (c), the commission may not assess
  an administrative penalty against the employer.
         (e)  The commission may assess an administrative penalty
  against a construction employer for a violation of this chapter
  only if the employer fails to correct the violation before the 31st
  business day after the date the employer receives notice that the
  employer has violated this chapter.
         (f)  The commission may award the construction employee all
  appropriate relief, including rehiring or reinstatement to the
  employee's previous job, payment of back wages, and reestablishment
  of employee benefits for which the employee otherwise would have
  been eligible if the employee had not been subject to retaliatory
  personnel action or other discrimination.
         (g)  A party may appeal a final decision of the commission in
  the manner prescribed by Section 61.062.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 83, Labor Code, as added by this Act,
  applies only to a violation that occurs on or after the effective
  date of this Act.
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
  last day of the legislative session.