Evidentiary privileges: union agent-represented worker privilege.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide details on enforcement mechanisms or consequences for breaking the privilege, leaving these points as unknowns.

Union Agent-Worker Communication Privacy

This bill creates a new rule allowing union agents to keep private conversations they have with workers confidential, similar to how doctors and lawyers can keep their talks secret.

What This Bill Does

• Creates a new privacy rule for communications between union agents and the workers they represent.
• Allows workers or former workers to prevent others from disclosing these private conversations.
• Does not apply in criminal cases.

Who It Names or Affects

• Union agents
• Workers and former workers who are represented by union agents

Terms To Know

Privilege

A special right that lets people keep certain information private in court.

Waive

To give up or stop using a privilege.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify how it will be enforced.
• It is unclear what happens if someone breaks this privacy rule.

Official Summary Text

AB 1109, as introduced, Kalra.
Evidentiary privileges: union agent-represented worker privilege.
Existing law governs the admissibility of evidence in court proceedings and generally provides a privilege as to communications made in the course of certain relations, including the attorney-client, physician-patient, and psychotherapist-patient relationship, as specified. Under existing law, the right of any person to claim those evidentiary privileges is waived with respect to a communication protected by the privilege if any holder of the privilege, without coercion, has disclosed a significant part of the communication or has consented to a disclosure.
This bill would establish a privilege between a union agent, as defined, and a represented employee or represented former employee to refuse to disclose any confidential communication between the employee or former employee and the union agent made while the union agent was acting in the union
agent’s representative capacity, except as specified. The bill would permit a represented employee or represented former employee to prevent another person from disclosing a privileged communication, except as specified. The bill would further provide that this privilege may be waived in accordance with existing law and does not apply in criminal proceedings.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF