Governor signs 3 bills to increase worker protections

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed three bills Thursday that will increase protections for workers as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

Senate Bill 1159 adds illness or death resulting from the coronavirus to the definition of "injury" used in workers' compensation claims, under certain circumstances, until Jan. 1, 2023. It would also create a disputable presumption that the virus was contracted during the course of employment, placing the burden of proof on employers that it was not.

The bill goes into effect immediately, and is the legislative version of an executive order on workers' compensation Newsom signed in May. The order also created a rebuttable presumption that certain employees who test positive for COVID-19 contracted the virus at work. The bill was authored by Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo).

Assembly Bill 685 gives public and private employers one business day to notify employees after they've received notice the employees have potentially been exposed to COVID-19. Authored by Assembly Member Eloise Gómez Reyes, D-San Bernardino, the bill would require employers to maintain records of these notices for at least three years, and additionally mandates they report outbreaks to their local public health agency within 48 hours.

Finally, Newsom signed Senate Bill 1383, which requires employers with five or more employees to provide workers with job-protected leave to bond with a newborn, care for a seriously ill family member, care for their own illness, or address a military exigency. The bill, authored by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, is an expansion of the California Family Rights Act.

A release from Newsom's office Thursday noted the bill aligns the California Family Rights Act's employer size threshold with the threshold in the Pregnancy Disability Leave program.

-- Jessica Mach