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California Labor Code Section 511

Legal Research Home > California Lawyer > Labor Code > California Labor Code Section 511

(a) Upon the proposal of an employer, the employees of an
employer may adopt a regularly scheduled alternative workweek that
authorizes work by the affected employees for no longer than 10 hours
per day within a 40-hour workweek without the payment to the
affected employees of an overtime rate of compensation pursuant to
this section.  A proposal to adopt an alternative workweek schedule
shall be deemed adopted only if it receives approval in a secret
ballot election by at least two-thirds of affected employees in a
work unit.  The regularly scheduled alternative workweek proposed by
an employer for adoption by employees may be a single work schedule
that would become the standard schedule for workers in the work unit,
or a menu of work schedule options, from which each employee in the
unit would be entitled to choose.
   (b) An affected employee working longer than eight hours but not
more than 12 hours in a day pursuant to an alternative workweek
schedule adopted pursuant to this section shall be paid an overtime
rate of compensation of no less than one and one-half times the
regular rate of pay of the employee for any work in excess of the
regularly scheduled hours established by the alternative workweek
agreement and for any work in excess of 40 hours per week.  An
overtime rate of compensation of no less than double the regular rate
of pay of the employee shall be paid for any work in excess of 12
hours per day and for any work in excess of eight hours on those days
worked beyond the regularly scheduled workdays established by the
alternative workweek agreement.  Nothing in this section requires an
employer to combine more than one rate of overtime compensation in
order to calculate the amount to be paid to an employee for any hour
of overtime work.
   (c) An employer shall not reduce an employee's regular rate of
hourly pay as a result of the adoption, repeal or nullification of an
alternative workweek schedule.
   (d) An employer shall make a reasonable effort to find a work
schedule not to exceed eight hours in a workday, in order to
accommodate any affected employee who was eligible to vote in an
election authorized by this section and who is unable to work the
alternative schedule hours established as the result of that
election.  An employer shall be permitted to provide a work schedule
not to exceed eight hours in a workday to accommodate any employee
who was hired after the date of the election and who is unable to
work the alternative schedule established as the result of that
election.  An employer shall explore any available reasonable
alternative means of accommodating the religious belief or observance
of an affected employee that conflicts with an adopted alternative
workweek schedule, in the manner provided by subdivision (j) of
Section 12940 of the Government Code.
   (e) The results of any election conducted pursuant to this section
shall be reported by an employer to the Division of Labor Statistics
and Research within 30 days after the results are final.
   (f) Any type of alternative workweek schedule that is authorized
by this code and that was in effect on January 1, 2000, may be
repealed by the affected employees pursuant to this section.  Any
alternative workweek schedule that was adopted pursuant to Wage Order
Numbers 1, 4, 5, 7, or 9 of the Industrial Welfare Commission is
null and void, except for an alternative workweek providing for a
regular schedule of no more than 10 hours' work in a workday that was
adopted by a two-thirds vote of affected employees in a secret
ballot election pursuant to wage orders of the Industrial Welfare
Commission in effect prior to 1998.  This subdivision does not apply
to exemptions authorized pursuant to Section 515.
   (g) Notwithstanding subdivision (f), an alternative workweek
schedule in the health care industry adopted by a two-thirds vote of
affected employees in a secret ballot election pursuant to Wage
Orders 4 and 5 in effect prior to 1998 that provided for workdays
exceeding 10 hours but not exceeding 12 hours in a day without the
payment of overtime compensation shall be valid until July 1, 2000.
An employer in the health care industry shall make a reasonable
effort to accommodate any employee in the health care industry who is
unable to work the alternative schedule established as the result of
a valid election held in accordance with provisions of Wage Orders 4
or 5 that were in effect prior to 1998.
   (h) Notwithstanding subdivision (f), if an employee is voluntarily
working an alternative workweek schedule providing for a regular
work schedule of not more than 10 hours work in a workday as of July
1, 1999, an employee may continue to work that alternative workweek
schedule without the entitlement of the payment of daily overtime
compensation for the hours provided in that schedule if the employer
approves a written request of the employee to work that schedule.

Last modified: January 12, 2009