AN ACT CONCERNING THE RETENTION OF SERVICE CONTRACT WORKERS.

Senate
sSB358 / File No. 356 1

General Assembly File No. 356
February Session, 2026 Substitute Senate Bill No. 358

Senate, April 2, 2026

The Committee on Labor and Public Employees reported
through SEN. KUSHNER of the 24th Dist., Chairperson of the
Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill
ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING THE RETENTION OF SERVICE CONTRACT
WORKERS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 31 -57g of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 2
(a) (1) "Assisted living services agency" has the same meaning as 3
provided in section 19a-490. 4
[(a) (1)] (2) "Awarding authority" means any person, including a 5
contractor or subcontractor, that awards or otherwise enters into a 6
contract or subcontract to perform (A) food and beverage services at 7
Bradley International Airport , and (B) on and after October 1, 2026, 8
services at a covered location. "Awarding authority" does not include 9
the federal government or the state. 10
(3) "Carrier" has the same meaning as provided in section 14-212. 11
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[(2)] (4) "Contractor" means any person that enters into a service 12
contract with the awarding authority and any subcontractors to such 13
service contract at any tier who employs [ten] two or more persons. 14
(5) "Covered location" includes the following locations: (A) 15
Multifamily residential building or complex with fifty or more units, (B) 16
a commercial center or complex or office building occupying more than 17
seventy-five thousand square feet, (C) municipal office building or 18
facility, (D) electric distribution company facility, (E) gas company 19
facility, (F) public or nonpublic school, (G) cultural center or complex, 20
including a museum, convention center, arena or performance hall, (H) 21
shopping mall or bank branch, (I) industrial site, (J) pharmaceutical lab, 22
(K) airport or train station, (L) hospital, nursing home facility or 23
institution operated or managed by an assisted living services agency, 24
(M) warehouse, distribution center or other facility in which the primary 25
purpose is the storage or distribution of general merchandise, 26
refrigerated goods or other products, (N) independent institution of 27
higher education campus, (O) property owned by a carrier that is used 28
for the transportation of students or related services, and (P) data center. 29
[(3)] (6) "Employee" means any person engaged to perform food and 30
beverage services at Bradley International Airport pursuant to a service 31
contract, but does not include a person who is (A) a managerial, 32
supervisory or confidential employee, including any person who would 33
be so defined under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, or (B) 34
employed for less than fifteen hours per week. 35
(7) "Employer" means any person that employs two or more 36
employees or service workers. "Employer" includes any municipal or 37
local government, but does not include the federal government or the 38
state. 39
(8) "Hospital" has the same meaning as provided in section 19a-490. 40
(9) "Nursing home facility" has the same meaning as provided in 41
section 19a-490. 42
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[(4)] (10) "Person" means any individual, proprietorship, partnership, 43
joint venture, corporation, limited liability company, trust association or 44
other entity that may employ or enter into other contracts, [including] 45
but does not include the state. [and its political subdivisions.] 46
[(5)] (11) "Service contract" means a contract for the performance of 47
(A) food and beverage services by an employee at Bradley International 48
Airport, let by the awarding authority [(A)] (i) after July 1, 2001, and 49
before July 1, 2002, provided the successor contractor had actual 50
knowledge of the pendency in the General Assembly of proposed 51
legislation with content similar to this section, or [(B)] (ii) on or after July 52
1, 2002, or (B) services by a service worker at a covered location, let by 53
the awarding authority on or after October 1, 2026. 54
(12) (A) "Service worker" means a person engaged to perform any of 55
the following services: 56
(i) Care or maintenance services at a covered location, including 57
services performed by a security guard, front -desk worker, janitor, 58
housekeeper, maintenance employee, concierge, door attendant, 59
building superintendent, grounds maintenance worker, stationary 60
fireman, elevator operator or window cleaner; 61
(ii) Passenger-related security services, cargo and ramp services, in -62
terminal passenger and baggage handling and cleaning services at an 63
airport; 64
(iii) Food preparation or dietary services at a public or nonpublic 65
school, independent institution of higher education, hospital, nursing 66
home facility or institution operated or managed by an assisted living 67
services agency; 68
(iv) Health care services at a hospital, nursing home facility or 69
institution operated or managed by an assisted living services agency; 70
and 71
(v) Student transportation services; and 72
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(B) "Service worker" does not include a (i) managerial, supervisory or 73
confidential employee, including any person who would be so defined 74
under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, or (ii) person engaged to 75
perform services related to a project that requires a permit issued by a 76
municipality, including a building, mechanical, plumbing, structural or 77
electrical project. 78
(13) "Successor employer" means (A) an employer that has (i) been 79
awarded a successor service contract, or (ii) purchased or acquired 80
control of a property where employees or service workers were 81
employed at any time during the previous ninety -day period, or (B) an 82
awarding authority that has hired employees or service workers to 83
perform services substantially the same to services previously provided 84
under a terminated or nonrenewed service contract. 85
[(6)] (14) "Successor service contract" means a service contract with 86
the awarding authority under which substantially the same services to 87
be performed have previously been rendered to the awarding authority 88
as part of the same program or at the same facility under another service 89
contract or have previously been rendered by the awarding authority's 90
own employees or service workers. 91
[(7)] (15) "Terminated contractor" means a contractor whose service 92
contract expires without renewal or whose contract is terminated, and 93
includes the awarding authority itself when (A) work previously 94
rendered by the awarding authority's own employees or service 95
workers is the subject of a successor service contract, or (B) the awarding 96
authority sells or transfers a property where employees or service 97
workers were employed at any time during the previous ninety -day 98
period. 99
[(b) Each contractor and awarding authority that enters into a service 100
contract to be performed at Bradley International Airport shall be 101
subject to the following obligations:] 102
[(1) The awarding authority shall ] (b) (1) Not later than fifteen days 103
prior to the (A) termination or nonrenewal of any service contract, (B) 104
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contracting out of services previously performed by the awarding 105
authority's own employees or service workers, or (C) selling or 106
transferring of any property where employees or service workers were 107
employed at any time during the previous ninety -day period, the 108
awarding authority shall, where applicable, give advance notice to a 109
terminated contractor, the employees or service workers of such 110
terminated contractor and the exclusive bargaining representative of 111
any of the terminated contractor's employees or service workers, of the 112
termination or nonrenewal of such service contract , [and] contracting 113
out of such services or the sale or transfer of such property. Such notice 114
shall be provided in writing and be posted in a conspicuous place at the 115
worksite. The awarding authority shall provide the terminated 116
contractor, employees or service workers and the exclusive bargaining 117
representative with the name, telephone number and address of the 118
successor [contractor or contractors] employer or employers, if known. 119
The terminated contractor shall, not later than three days after receipt of 120
such notice, provide the successor [contractor] employer with the name, 121
date of hire and employment occupation classification of each person 122
employed by the terminated contractor at the site or sites covered by the 123
service contract as of the date the terminated contractor receives the 124
notice of termination or nonrenewal, notice of contracting out or notice 125
of the sale or transfer. 126
(2) On the date the (A) service contract terminates, (B) the successor 127
service contract for services previously performed by the awarding 128
authority's own employees or service workers begins, or (C) the sale or 129
transfer of property occurs, the terminated contractor shall provide the 130
successor [contractor] employer with updated information concerning 131
the name, date of hire and employment occupation classification of each 132
person employed by the terminated contractor at the site or sites 133
covered by the service contract, to ensure that such information is 134
current up to the actual date of service contract termination , the actual 135
contract start date or the actual date of the sale or transfer. 136
(3) If the awarding authority fails to notify the terminated contractor 137
of the identity of the successor [contractor] employer, as required by 138
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subdivision (1) of this subsection, the terminated contractor shall 139
provide the information described in subdivision (2) of this subsection 140
to the awarding authority not later than three days after receiving notice 141
that the service contract will be terminated or notice of the sale or 142
transfer of a property . The awarding authority shall be responsible for 143
providing such information to the successor [contractor] employer as 144
soon as the successor [contractor] employer has been selected. 145
(4) (A) [Except as provided in subparagraph (D) of this subdivision, 146
a] A successor [contractor] employer shall retain, for at least ninety days 147
from the date of first performance of services under the successor 148
service contract or from the date of the sale or transfer of a property, all 149
of the employees or service workers who were continuously employed 150
by the terminated contractor at the site or sites covered by the service 151
contract during the [six-month] ninety-day period immediately 152
preceding the termination or nonrenewal of such service contract, 153
including any periods of layoff or leave with recall rights. 154
(B) [Except as provided in subparagraph (D) of this subdivision, if] If 155
the successor service contract is terminated prior to the expiration of 156
such ninety -day period, then any [contractor] successor employer 157
awarded a subsequent successor service contract shall be bound by the 158
requirements set forth in this subsection to retain, for a new ninety-day 159
period commencing with the onset of the subsequent successor service 160
contract, all of the employees or service workers who were previously 161
employed by any one or more of the terminated contractors at the site 162
or sites covered by the service contract continuously during the [six-163
month] ninety-day period immediately preceding the date of the most 164
recently terminated service contract, including any periods of layoff or 165
leave with recall rights. 166
(C) At least five days prior to the termination of a service contract or 167
the sale or transfer of a property where employees or service workers 168
were employed at any time during the previous ninety -day period, or 169
at least fifteen days prior to the commencement of the first performance 170
of service under a successor service contract, whichever is later, the 171
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successor [contractor] employer shall hand -deliver a written offer of 172
employment in substantially the form set forth below to each such 173
employee or service worker in such employee's or service worker's 174
native language or any other language in which such employee or 175
service worker is fluent: 176
"IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING YOUR 177
EMPLOYMENT 178
To: .... (Name of employee or service worker) 179
We have received information that you are employed by .... (name of 180
predecessor contractor) and are currently performing work at .... 181
(address of worksite) .... (name of predecessor contractor's) contract to 182
perform .... (describe services under contract) at .... (address of worksite) 183
will terminate as of .... (last day of predecessor contract) and it will no 184
longer be providing those services as of that date. 185
We are .... (name of successor [contractor] employer) and [have been 186
hired to provide] will be providing services similar to those of .... (name 187
of predecessor contractor) at .... (address of worksite). We are offering 188
you a job with us for a ninety-day probationary period starting .... (first 189
day of successor contract) to perform the same type of work that you 190
have already been doing for .... (name of predecessor contractor) under 191
the following terms: 192
Payrate (per hour): $.... 193
Hours per shift: .... 194
Total hours per week: .... 195
Benefits: .... 196
You must respond to this offer within the next ten days. If you want 197
to continue working at .... (address of worksite) you must let us know 198
by .... (no later than ten days after the date of this letter). If we do not 199
receive your response by the end of business that day, we will not hire 200
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you and you will lose your job. We can be reached at .... (successor 201
[contractor] employer telephone number). 202
Connecticut state law gives you the following rights: 203
1. You have the right with certain exceptions, to be hired by our 204
company for the first ninety days that we begin to provide services at .... 205
(address of worksite). 206
2. During this ninety -day period, you cannot be fired without just 207
cause. 208
3. If you believe that you have been fired or laid off in violation of this 209
law, you have the right to [sue us ] file a complaint with the Labor 210
Commissioner and be awarded back pay, attorneys' fees and court costs. 211
From: .... (Name of successor [contractor] employer) 212
.... (Address of successor [contractor] employer) 213
.... (Telephone number of successor [contractor] employer)" 214
Each offer of employment shall state the time within which such 215
employee or service worker must accept such offer but in no case shall 216
that time be less than ten days from the date of the offer of employment. 217
[(D) The provisions of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this subdivision 218
shall not be construed to require a successor contractor to retain any 219
employee whose attendance and performance records, while working 220
under the terminated service contract, would lead a reasonably prudent 221
employer to terminate the employee.] 222
(5) If at any time a successor [contractor] employer determines that 223
fewer employees or service workers are required to perform the 224
successor service contract than were required by the terminated 225
contractor, the successor [contractor] employer shall be required to 226
retain such employees or service workers by seniority within each job 227
classification, based upon the employees' total length of service at the 228
affected site or sites. 229
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(6) During such ninety -day period, the successor [contractor] 230
employer shall maintain a preferential hiring list of employees or service 231
workers eligible for retention pursuant to subdivision (4) of this 232
subsection, who were not initially retained by the successor [contractor] 233
employer, from which the successor contractor shall hire additional 234
employees or service workers, if necessary. 235
(7) Except as provided under subdivision (5) of this subsection, 236
during such ninety -day period, the successor [contractor] employer 237
shall not discharge without just cause an employee or service worker 238
retained pursuant to this section. For purposes of this subdivision, "just 239
cause" shall be determined solely by the performance or conduct of the 240
particular employee or service worker. 241
(8) If the performance of an employee or service worker retained 242
pursuant to this section is satisfactory during the ninety-day period, the 243
successor [contractor] employer shall offer the employee or service 244
worker continued employment under the terms and conditions 245
established by the successor contractor, or as required by law. 246
(c) (1) An employee or service worker, or a group of employees or 247
service workers, displaced or terminated in violation of this section, or 248
such employee's or service worker's collective bargaining 249
representative, may [bring an action in Superior Court against the 250
awarding authority, the terminated contractor or the successor 251
contractor, jointly or severally, to recover damages for any violation of 252
the obligations imposed under this section ] file a complaint with the 253
Labor Commissioner. Upon receipt of any such complaint, the 254
commissioner shall hold a hearing. After the hearing, the commissioner 255
shall send each party a written copy of the commissioner's decision. 256
(2) If the [employee prevails in such action, the court ] commissioner 257
finds that the awarding authority, the terminated contractor or the 258
successor employer has violated the provisions of this section, the 259
commissioner may award the employee or service worker (A) back pay, 260
including the value of benefits, for each day during which the violation 261
continues, that shall be calculated at a rate of compensation not less than 262
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the higher of (i) the average regular rate of pay received by the employee 263
or service worker during the last year of employment in the same job 264
occupation classification, or, if the employee or service worker has been 265
employed for less than one year, the average rate of pay for the 266
employee's or service worker's entire employment multiplied by the 267
average number of hours worked per day over the last four months of 268
employment preceding the date of the violation, or (ii) the final regular 269
rate of pay received by the employee or service worker at the date of 270
termination multiplied by the average number of hours worked per day 271
over the last four months, [and] (B) reinstatement to the employee's or 272
service worker's former position at not less than the most recent rate of 273
compensation received by the employee or service worker , including 274
the value of any benefits, and (C) compensatory damages. 275
(3) If the employee or service worker prevails in such action, the court 276
shall award the employee reasonable attorney fees and costs. 277
(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit an 278
employee's or service worker's right to bring a common law cause of 279
action for wrongful termination against the awarding authority, the 280
terminated contractor or the successor [contractor] employer. 281
(d) Any awarding authority, [or] terminated contractor or successor 282
employer who knowingly violates the provisions of this section shall 283
pay a penalty not to exceed [one] five hundred dollars per employee or 284
service worker for each day the violation continues. 285
(e) Any party aggrieved by the decision of the commissioner may 286
appeal the decision to the Superior Court in accordance with the 287
provisions of chapter 54. 288
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 31-57g

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Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Subsec. (a)(5)(F), " public or private elementary, middle or high
school" was changed to "public or nonpublic school" for proper form; in
Subsec. (a)(5)(N), "college or university " was changed to " independent
institution of higher education " for proper form ; in Subsec. (a)(10),
"including" was changed to "[including] but does not include" and "the
state and it's political subdivisions." was changed to "the state . [and it's
political subdivisions. ]" for consistency; in Subsec. (a)(12)(A)(iii),
"private or public elementary, middle or high school, college or
university campus " was changed to " public or nonpublic school,
independent institution of higher education " for proper form; and in
Subsec. (b)(2)(B), "contract" was changed to "successor service contract"
for consistency.

LAB Joint Favorable Subst.

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The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
Labor Dept. GF - Cost 86,681 112,907
Labor Dept. GF - Potential
Revenue Gain
See Below See Below
State Comptroller - Fringe
Benefits1
GF - Cost 32,179 42,906
Note: GF=General Fund

Municipal Impact:
Municipalities Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
All Municipalities; Local and
Regional School Districts
Potential
Cost
Potential Cost Potential Cost

Explanation
The bill expands existing worker retention requirements to include a
broader range of service contracts and covered locations. This results in
(1) a cost to the Department of Labor (DOL) of $86,681 in FY 27 (partial
year cost) and $112,907 in FY 28, (2) a cost to the State Comptroller -
Fringe Benefits account o f $32,179 (partial year cost) and $42,906 in FY
28, (3) a potential revenue gain to the DOL, and (4) a potential cost to
municipalities and districts.
State Impact:
The bill changes how complaints are currently handled by allowing
employees to file complaints with the DOL and requiring the agency to

1The fringe benefit costs for most state employees are budgeted centrally in accounts
administered by the Comptroller. The estimated active employee fringe benefit cost
associated with most personnel changes is 41.82% of payroll in FY 27.
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hold hearings instead of bringing action to the Superior Court 2. To
accommodate this change, the agency would need to hire one additional
staff attorney for its Legal Division (annualized cost of $102,597 for
salary, $10,311 for overhead, and $42,906 for fringe benefits).
Additionally, the bill increases penalties for violations from up to
$100 to up to $500 per employee or service worker for each day the
violation continues. This results in a potential revenue gain to the DOL
to the extent violations are found and penalties are paid.
Municipal Impact:
The bill requires certain vendors providing contracted services to
municipalities and school districts to retain their predecessors'
employees for at least 90 days. This results in a potential cost to
municipalities and districts, beginning in FY 27, assoc iated with
increased personnel and vendor costs. The potential cost to a
municipality or district depends on the terms of existing and future
contracts, and the terms of a contract that a municipality or district
would have entered into in the absence of the bill's provisions.
There is also a potential cost to municipalities and districts associated
with violating the provisions of the bill including: (1) making backpay
or compensatory damage payments if the DOL determines the
municipality or district violated the terms of the b ill; and (2) a penalty
of up to $500 per day per worker for which the provisions of the bill
were violated. The cost to a municipality or district depends on the
violation of the bill's provisions and DOL's ruling in a hearing.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to inflation , violations, and penalties
collected.

2 The court system disposes of over 250,000 cases annually and any decrease in cases
as a result of the bill is not anticipated to be great enough to result in savings.
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OLR Bill Analysis
sSB 358

AN ACT CONCERNING THE RETENTION OF SERVICE CONTRACT
WORKERS.

SUMMARY
This bill requires entities that (1) take over certain service contracts at
covered locations, (2) contract out services, or (3) receive property in a
sale or transfer, to retain certain service workers from their predecessors
for at least 90 days. If the worker’s p erformance is satisfactory during
these 90 days, the successor employer must extend them an offer of
continued employment either under terms and conditions the successor
employer sets or by law. Existing law already gives similar protections
to e mployees performing food and beverage services at Bradley
International Airport (BIA) after a contract termination.
The bill imposes responsibilities on the authority (at BIA or other
covered locations) that initially awards the contract, the original
contractor, and successor employers who have two or more employees.
Current law imposes these responsibilities on the authority that initially
awards the contract, the original contractor, and successor contractors
who have 10 or more employees.
The bill extends existing provisions to the new circumstances covered
by the bill , such as those requiring advance notice to (1) a contractor
whose contract will be terminated or not renewed, (2) workers, and (3)
the union representing the workers.
The bill permits workers who are displaced or terminated in violation
of the bill to file a complaint with the labor commissioner (currently BIA
workers can sue in court). It requires the labor commissioner to hold a
hearing and permits the commissioner to award the employee or service
worker back pay, benefits, reinstatement to their former position at their
most recent salary and benefit level, and compensatory damages.
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The bill also makes conforming and technical changes.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026
SCOPE OF THE BILL
The bill expands the application of the law giving certain job
protections to BIA food and beverage workers to contracts for services
by service workers at covered locations. Under the bill, a service worker
is a person performing certain services under a successor service
contract, including:
1. care or maintenance services, including a security guard, front -
desk worker, janitor, housekeeper, maintenance employee,
concierge, door attendant, building superintendent, grounds
maintenance worker, stationary fireman, elevator operator, or
window cleaner;
2. passenger-related security services, cargo and in -ramp services,
in-terminal passenger and baggage handling, and cleaning
services at an airport;
3. food preparation or dietary services at a school, private higher
education institution, hospital, nursing home facility, or an
institution operated or managed by an assisted living services
agency;
4. health care services provided at a hospital, nursing home facility,
or an institution operated or managed by an assisted living
services agency; and
5. student transportation services.
Under the bill, a service worker is not a person who is (1) a
managerial, supervisory, or confidential employee under the federal
Fair Labor Standards Act, or (2) engaged to perform services related to
a project that requires a permit from a municipality, such as a building,
mechanical, plumbing, structural, or electrical project.
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The services must be provided at “covered locations,” which are:
1. multifamily residential buildings or complexes with 50 or more
units;
2. commercial centers or complexes over 75,000 square feet;
3. municipal office buildings or facilities;
4. electric or natural gas company facilities;
5. public or nonpublic schools;
6. cultural centers or complexes, such as museums, convention
centers, arenas, or performance halls;
7. shopping malls or bank branches;
8. industrial sites;
9. pharmaceutical labs;
10. airports or train stations;
11. hospitals, nursing homes, or institutions operated or managed by
assisted living services agencies;
12. warehouses, distribution centers, or other facilities that store or
distribute general merchandise, refrigerated goods, or other
products;
13. private higher education institution campuses;
14. property owned by a carrier (a local or regional school district,
educational institution providing elementary or secondary
education, someone under contract with them to transport
students, or someone primarily transporting people under age 21
for pay) to transport students or related services; and
15. data centers.
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Definitions of Various Medical Facilities
The bill defines a hospital as an establishment for the lodging, care ,
and treatment of pe ople suffering from disease or other abnormal
physical or mental conditions. It includes inpatient psychiatric services
in general hospitals.
Under the bill, a nursing home facility is any chronic and
convalescent nursing home (1) or any rest home with nursing
supervision that provides nursing supervision under a medical director
24 hours a day, or (2) that provides skilled nursing care under medical
supervision and direction to carry out nonsurgical treatment and
dietary proced ures for chronic diseases, convalescent stages, acute
diseases, or injuries.
The bill defines an assisted living services agency as an agency that
provides chronic and stable individuals with nursing services and
assistance with activities of daily living. It may have a dementia special
care unit or program.
Awarding Authority
Existing law defines an awarding authority as any person that
awards or enters into a contract to perform food and beverage services
at BIA. The bill extends this to anyone who awards or enters into a
contract to perform services at a covered location star ting October 1,
2026. The bill specifies that the state and federal government are not
awarding authorities.
Successor Employer
The bill defines a “successor employer” as an employer that has (1)
been awarded a successor service contract, ( 2) purchased or acquired
control of a property where employees or service workers were
employed at any time during the past 90 days , or ( 3) an awarding
authority that has hired employees or service workers to perform
services that are substantially the same as those previously provided
under a terminated or nonrenewed service contract.
The bill extends the definitions of successor service contracts and
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terminated contractors to cover the scope of the circumstances added by
the bill.
AWARDING AUTHORITY'S RESPONSIBILITIES
The bill generally extends existing responsibilities of awarding
authorities to the new situations covered by the bill. The awarding
authority must give advance notice to a contractor whose contract will
be terminated or not renewed, the workers, and the union representing
them within 15 days of the termination of the service contract, the
contracting out of services previously done by the authority, or the sale
or transfer of the property (if workers were employed there within the
prior 90 days). Under the bill, and existing law for eligible BIA workers,
the authority must give the contractor and union the name, address, and
telephone number of the successor employer or contractors, if known.
The bill requires this notice in writing and posted in a conspicu ous
place. Under the bill and existing law for eligible BIA workers,
authorities must also give new employers information about the
workers.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF SUCCESSOR EMPLOYERS
The bill generally extends existing responsibilities of successor
employers to the new situations covered by the bill. A successor
employer must hand deliver a written employment offer to the workers.
It must be written in a language the worker understands . As under
current law, it must be delivered by the later of five days before the
termination of the original contract or 15 days before the contractor
begins to provide service. The bill also requires this notice five days
before the sale or transfer of a covered location where whether workers
were employed during the previous 90 days. Existing law already
requires successor contractors to deliver this written offer to each
eligible BIA employee within this timeframe.
The bill, and existing law for eligible BIA workers, specify the notice’s
content. Among other things, the employer must inform the worker of
pay rate, hours (per shift and per week), and benefits it is offering. The
notice must (1) describe the worker’s r ights under the bill, (2) include
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the employer’s name, address, and telephone number; and (3) state that
the employee or service worker has 10 days to respond. Under the bill,
the notice also must inform workers that they can file a complaint with
the labor commissioner. Current law requir es successor contractors to
inform BIA employees, in the notice, that they have the right to sue the
successor contractor.
Under the bill and existing law for eligible BIA workers, a worker
cannot be fired, during a 90 -day period, without just cause. The bill
gives this protection to workers who were employed during the prior
90 days (for BIA workers it reduces this time frame from the previous
six months). As under existing law for BIA workers, the bill requires
contractors, during these 90 days, to keep a preferential hiring list of
workers eligible for retention that it did not initially retain. (It is not clear
which employ ees or service workers would be affected by this
provision.) The contractor must hire additional employees or service
workers, if needed, from this list.
Under the bill and existing law for BIA workers, the contractor may
determine at any time that it needs fewer employees or service workers
than the terminated contractor had and can lay them off. In doing so, it
must retain employees by seniority within ea ch job class, based on an
employee’s total length of service at the affected site.
The bill eliminates a provision applicable to BIA workers that a
successor contractor is not required to retain employees with attendance
and performance records under the prior contract that would lead a
reasonably prudent employer to terminate them.
REMEDIES FOR A DISPLACED EMPLOYEE OR SERVICE WORKER
Under the bill, a worker displaced or terminated in violation of the
above provisions can file a complaint with the labor commissioner, who
must hold a hearing on receipt of the complaint. It requires the labor
commissioner to send each party a written copy of her decision after the
hearing. If the commissioner decides that the awarding authority,
terminated contractor, or successor employer has violated the above
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provisions, she may award the employee or service worker back pay,
benefits, reinstatement to their former position at their most recent
salary and benefit level, and compensatory damages.
As under existing law for BIA workers, the bill requires that back pay
be based on at least the higher of (1) the worker’s regular pay rate for
their last year on the job ( their last four months on the job if they were
employed for less than one year), or (2) their final regular rate of pay on
their last day.
Under the bill, an aggrieved party can appeal the labor
commissioner’s decision to the Superior Court.
The bill eliminates current law which permits (1) a BIA employee to
bring suit in Superior Court and (2) courts to award back pay,
reasonable attorney fees, and costs if the aggrieved employee prevails.
As under current law for eligible BIA workers, these provisions do
not limit a worker’s right to file suit against the awarding authority,
terminated contractor, or successor employer for wrongful termination
under common law.
Under the bill, an awarding authority, terminated contractor, or
successor employer who violates the above provisions must pay a
penalty of $500 per employee or service worker for each day the
violation continues. This replaces current law, which requires an
awarding authority or contractor in violation of these provisions related
to BIA workers to pay a penalty of $100 per employee for each day the
violation continues.
BACKGROUND
Related Bill
sHB 5003 (§ 10), favorably reported by the Labor and Public
Employees Committee, has an identical provision on the retention of
service contract workers.
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COMMITTEE ACTION
Labor and Public Employees Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 9 Nay 4 (03/17/2026)