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Assembly Bill 3603 (Lockyer-1976)
Chapter 1041, Statutes of 1976
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The Third Reading analysis of Assembly Bill 3603 as last amended presented by the Senate Republican Caucus provides the following digest of the bill:
Requires farm labor contractors to pay their employees once each week, rather than once every two weeks.
Also requires agricultural employers to pay their agricultural employees within 5 days after the end of the pay period, rather than within 10 days. This would not apply to agricultural employees who are boarded and lodged by their employers.
Prohibits any employment contract or policy from requiring forfeiture of vested vacation time upon the termination of employment. It would also require the Labor Commissioner, when resolving disputes regarding vested vacation time, to apply the principles of equity and fairness.
Specifies that the above provisions are declaratory of the existing law and the original intent of the Legislature in enacting the existing law.
(See Exhibit #10b)
Background information is addressed in the Assembly Committee on Labor Relations analysis of Assembly Bill 3603 as amended on May 12, 1976 as follows:
Existing law provides that all wages, except for motion picture workers, professional workers, and agricultural and domestic workers receiving room and board, and employees of farm labor contractors, are due and payable twice during a calendar month. Last August, this committee investigated and held a hearing into the problem of farm workers not being paid for work performed because of financial insolvency of employers. At that time it was recommended that a shortening of the pay period for agricultural employees would help reduce the incidence and the amount of unpaid wages due to insolvent or bankrupt agricultural operations.
Existing law provides that unless stipulated otherwise by a collective bargaining agreement, an employee terminated without taking vested vacation time shall be paid for the vacation time at his final rate of pay. Up until a recent Superior Court decision (AP 1544, Orange County), the Labor Commissioner dealt with wage claims involving vacation time on the basis of equity and whether the employee had substantially performed prior to termination. The Superior Court ruled, however, that an employee had to complete an employer determined time period before vacation vesting time begins.
(See Exhibit #3b, page 1)
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