CHAPTER
5. Call Center Protections
1410.
For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:(a) “Call center” means a facility or other operation where workers, as their primary function, receive telephone calls or other electronic communication for the purpose of providing customer service or other related functions.
(b) “Commissioner” means the Labor Commissioner.
(c) “Disaster” means an emergency or natural disaster declared by the Governor to be an emergency pursuant to Section 8558 of the Government Code, or any other emergency or event, that prohibits the contracted private entity from
operating in the call center or in any other facility operated by the contracted private entity within the state.
(d) “Division” means the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
(e) (1) “Employer” means any business that employs for the purpose of customer service or back-office operations in the state either of the following:
(A) Fifty or more employees, excluding part-time employees.
(B) Fifty or more employees who in the aggregate work at least 1,500 hours per week, exclusive of hours of overtime.
(2) “Employer” does not include an affiliate of that employer, as
defined in Section 150 of the Corporations Code, if the affiliate does not operate or utilize the impacted call center, or exercise control over the impacted call center’s employees or call center operations.
(f) “Overflow”
means work volume that is in excess of the forecasted volume specified in the call center’s contract with the state agency and is an increase of at least 30 percent of anticipated volume when measured against the average monthly call or contact volume for the previous 12 months.
(g) “Part-time employee” means an employee who is employed for an average of fewer than 20 hours per week or who has been employed for fewer than 6 of the 12 months preceding the date on which notice is required.
1411.
(a) An employer that intends to relocate its call center, or one or more facilities or operating units within a call center comprising at least 30 percent of the call center’s or operating unit’s total volume when measured against the average call volume for the previous 12 months, or substantially similar operations, from this state to a foreign country shall notify the commissioner at least 120 days before the relocation.(b) At the commissioner’s discretion, an employer that violates subdivision (a) shall be subject to
a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for every day of the violation.
(c) The commissioner shall compile and publish semiannually a list of employers who provide notice pursuant to subdivision (a). The list shall be made available to all state entities that need the information for purposes of compliance with Section 1412.
(d) Subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) do not apply to employer activity that is in compliance with subdivisions (c) and (d) of Section 1413.
(e) All civil penalties collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the Labor Enforcement and Compliance Fund for distribution to the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. Upon appropriation by the Legislature, these funds may be expended by the division to cover the ongoing costs of administering and enforcing
this section and Section 1412.
1412.
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), and notwithstanding any other provision of law, an employer that appears on the list described in subdivision (c) of Section 1411 shall be ineligible to be awarded or have renewed any direct or indirect state grants or state-guaranteed loans to that employer for five years after the date that the list is published, and that employer shall be ineligible to claim a tax credit for five taxable years beginning on and after the date that the list is published.(b) The
appropriate agency, after receiving a written request from an employer detailing the reasons for waiving the employer’s ineligibility under subdivision (a), and after consulting with the commissioner, may waive the ineligibility provisions prescribed in subdivision (a) if the agency determines that the applicant employer demonstrates good cause to do so, which may include job loss or adverse impact on the state.
1413.
(a) Each state agency shall ensure that call center work performed by a private entity contracted to provide, as the primary function of the private entity, call center services on behalf of the state agency is performed in California.(b) A private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services that, as of January 1, 2020, performs these services, in part or in whole, outside of California, shall ensure that these services, commencing December 31, 2021, are performed in California. A call center employee who is hired on and after January 1, 2020, by a private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services shall perform these
services in California.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), if a disaster occurs, a private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services may utilize a call center facility outside of the state for a maximum of 30 days or until the call center’s facility within the state is operational, whichever occurs first, subject to agreement by the state agency.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), a private entity that has contracted with the state for call center services may utilize a call center facility outside of the state for overflow for a period not to exceed 48 hours, or for a period previously approved by the state agency for that contract, to accommodate seasonal needs and avoid unreasonable, short-term costs for the state.
Utilizing a call center facility outside of the state for overflow pursuant to this subdivision shall, at the state agency’s request, trigger a reassessment of the forecasted volume specified in the contract.
(e) This section shall not apply to contracts covered by Section 12140 of the Public Contract Code.
1414.
This chapter shall not be construed to permit withholding or denial of payments, compensation, or benefits under any other state law, including state unemployment compensation, disability payments, or worker retraining or readjustment funds, to workers employed by employers that relocate to a foreign country.1415.
The commissioner may adopt rules and regulations as necessary and proper to effectuate the purposes of this chapter, in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.