Minimum wages: persons with disabilities.

(1) Existing law establishes a minimum wage for all industries and makes it a crime to pay an employee less than the minimum wage fixed by the Industrial Welfare Commission. Existing law, however, permits the commission to issue an employee who is mentally or physically disabled, or both, a special license authorizing the employment of the licensee for a period not to exceed one year from date of issue, at a wage less than the minimum wage. Existing law requires the commission to fix a special minimum wage for the licensee, which may be renewed on a yearly basis. This bill would prohibit new special licenses from being issued after January 1, 2022. The bill would permit a license to only be renewed for existing licenseholders who meet requisite benchmarks. The bill would make the above-described provision authorizing a lesser minimum wage for an employee who is mentally or physically disabled inoperative on January 1, 2025, or when the multiyear phaseout plan as described below is released, whichever is later. The bill, commencing on the later of January 1, 2025, or when the plan is released, would prohibit an employee with a disability from being paid less than the legal minimum wage or the applicable local minimum wage ordinance, whichever is higher. The bill would require the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, in consultation with stakeholders and relevant state agencies, to develop a multiyear phaseout plan with stakeholder involvement, by January 1, 2023, to pay any employee with a disability, as defined, by January 1, 2025, no less than the state minimum wage otherwise required. The bill would require the multiyear phaseout plan to contain specified components, including benchmarks and desired outcomes for each year of the plan and a list of resources to ensure employees with disabilities can receive services based on their needs. The bill would require the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, in developing the multiyear phaseout plan, to engage with and seek input from people with developmental disabilities who have experience working for subminimum wage and various stakeholder organizations. The bill would require the State Council on Developmental Disabilities to release and publicly post on its internet website a report by January 1, 2023. The bill would also require the State Council on Developmental Disabilities to submit a copy of the report on its multiyear phaseout plan to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature for review on or before January 1, 2023. The bill would further require the State Council on Developmental Disabilities to publicly post on its internet website and submit to the Legislature an annual report beginning on January 1, 2024, as specified, detailing specified information about the multiyear phaseout plan. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Under existing law, the Industrial Welfare Commission is authorized to issue a special license to a nonprofit organization such as a sheltered workshop or rehabilitation facility to permit the employment of disabled employees who the commission has determined meet the requirements for paying less than the state minimum wage without requiring individual licenses of those employees. Existing law requires the commission to fix a special minimum wage for those employees, subject to renewal, as specified. This bill would repeal that provision on January 1, 2025. This bill would also include related legislative findings about the need to afford equal pay and equal treatment in the workplace to all Californians, including those with disabilities. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.