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 Bill Text - AB-1371 Occupational safety and health: employee refusal to perform hazardous tasks.

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 |Add To My Favorites |Track Bill | Version: 02/21/25 - Introduced

 AB-1371 Occupational safety and health: employee refusal to perform hazardous tasks.(2025-2026)

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 Date Published: 02/21/2025 09:00 PM

AB1371:v99#DOCUMENTBill Start

 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

 Assembly Bill

No. 1371

Introduced by Assembly Member Sharp-Collins

February 21, 2025

 An act to repeal and add Section 6311 of the Labor Code, relating to employment. 

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1371, as introduced, Sharp-Collins.
 Occupational safety and health: employee refusal to perform hazardous tasks.

Existing law, the California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973, requires employers to comply with certain safety and health standards, as specified, and charges the Division of Occupational Safety and Health in the Department of Industrial Relations with enforcement of the act. Existing law prohibits an employer from laying off or discharging an employee for refusing to perform work that would violate prescribed safety standards where the violation would create a real and apparent hazard to the employee or other employees. Existing law defines “employee” for purposes of those provisions to include a domestic work employee, except as specified.

This bill would revise and recast those provisions to, among other things, allow an employee, acting in good faith, to refuse to perform a tasked assigned by an employer if it would violate those
 prescribed safety standards or if the employee has a reasonable apprehension that the performance of the assigned task would result in injury or illness to the employee or other employees. The bill would make the employee’s refusal contingent on the employee or another employee, if reasonably practical, having communicated or attempted to notify the employer of the safety or health risk and the employer having failed to provide a response that is reasonably calculated to allay the employee’s concerns. The bill would require the employer to pay the employee full wages during their scheduled work hours until, among other things, the employee can reasonably conclude that the task will no longer result in the risk of serious injury or illness to the employee or other employees. The bill would prohibit an employer from using an employee’s refusal to perform an assigned task as grounds for any disciplinary action, and would make certain retaliation protections applicable to the bill’s provisions. The bill would
 delete the provision defining “employee” to include a domestic work employee.

Digest Key

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

Bill Text

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

SECTION 1.

 Section 6311 of the Labor Code is repealed.

6311.No employee shall be laid off or discharged for refusing to perform work in the performance of which this code, including Section 6400, any occupational safety or health standard, or any safety order of the division or standards board will be violated, where the violation would create a real and apparent hazard to the employee or their fellow employees. Any employee who is laid off or discharged in violation of this section or is otherwise not paid because the employee refused to perform work in the performance of which this code, any occupational safety or health standard, or any safety order of the division or standards board will be violated and where the violation would create a real and apparent hazard to the employee
 or their fellow employees shall have a right of action for wages for the time the employee is without work as a result of the layoff or discharge. Notwithstanding Section 6303 or other law, as used in this section, “employee” includes a domestic work employee, except for a person who performs household domestic service that is publicly funded, including publicly funded household domestic service provided to a recipient, client, or beneficiary with a share of cost in that service.

SEC. 2.

 Section 6311 is added to the Labor Code, to read:

6311.

 (a) For purposes of this section:

(1) “Injury or illness” means an abnormal condition or disorder. “Injury” includes, but is not limited to, a cut, fracture, sprain, or amputation. “Illness” means both acute and chronic illnes