Job Killer Bills Move to California Senate

​Three California Chamber of Commerce-opposed “job killer” bills that expand discrimination litigation and protected leave requirements moved from the state Assembly to the state Senate.

Expands Litigation
AB 1450 (Allen; D-Santa Rosa) would subject employers to charges of discrimination for legitimately inquiring into an applicant’s employment history. The bill prohibits employers from considering an applicant’s current “employment status” when hiring for an available position, unless such status satisfies a “bona fide occupational” requirement. To avoid exposing an applicant’s current status as “unemployed” during the application process, however, employers will, in essence, be barred from asking questions regarding a recent employer, dates and reasons for separation or risk fines or litigation.

AB 1999 (Brownley; D-Santa Monica) would expand the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) by including “family caregiver status” as a protected classification under FEHA to prevent discrimination against employees on such a basis. AB 1999 provides such a broad application of a protected classification that it will essentially encompass almost all employees in the workforce. In 2010, approximately 19,500 discrimination claims were filed with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing under FEHA – an increase of 1,000 complaints from 2009.

Expands Leave Categories
AB 2039 (Swanson; D-Alameda) would create a California–only mandated benefit that significantly expands the category of individuals with serious health conditions for whom an employee can take a leave of absence beyond what is currently included under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. The bill seeks to expand the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) by allowing an employee a protected leave to care for adult children, parents-in-law, grandparents and siblings.

CalChamber.com has the full story on these three “job killer” bills. To learn about other “job killers,” check out CA Job Killers.