SECTIONS 1812.503-1812.5095 - California Statutes

CIVIL CODE

SECTION 1812.503-1812.5095

1812.503. (a) Every employment agency subject to this title shall
maintain a bond issued by a surety company admitted to do business in
this state. The principal sum of the bond shall be three thousand
dollars ($3,000). A copy of the bond shall be filed with the
Secretary of State.
(b) The bond required by this section shall be in favor of, and
payable to, the people of the State of California and shall be
conditioned that the person obtaining the bond will comply with this
title and will pay all sums due any individual or group of
individuals when the person or his or her representative, agent, or
employee has received those sums. The bond shall be for the benefit
of any person or persons damaged by any violation of this title or by
fraud, dishonesty, misstatement, misrepresentation, deceit, unlawful
acts or omissions, or failure to provide the services of the
employment agency in performance of the contract with the jobseeker,
by the employment agency or its agents, representatives, or employees
while acting within the scope of their employment.
(c) (1) No employment agency shall conduct any business without
having a current surety bond in the amount prescribed by this title
and filing a copy of the bond with the Secretary of State.
(2) Thirty days prior to the cancellation or termination of any
surety bond required by this section, the surety shall send a written
notice of that cancellation or termination to both the employment
agency and the Secretary of State, identifying the bond and the date
of cancellation or termination.
(3) If any employment agency fails to obtain a new bond and file a
copy of that bond with the Secretary of State by the effective date
of the cancellation or termination of the former bond, the employment
agency shall cease to conduct any business unless and until a new
surety bond is obtained and a copy of that bond is filed with the
Secretary of State.
(d) When a deposit has been made in lieu of the bond pursuant to
Section 995.710 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the person asserting
a claim against the deposit shall, in lieu of Section 996.430 of the
Code of Civil Procedure, establish the claim by furnishing evidence
to the Secretary of State of a money judgment entered by a court
together with evidence that the claimant is a person described in
subdivision (b).
(e) When a claimant has established the claim with the Secretary
of State, the Secretary of State shall review and approve the claim
and enter the date of approval thereon. The claim shall be designated
an "approved claim."
(f) When the first claim against a particular deposit has been
approved, it shall not be paid until the expiration of a period of
240 days after the date of its approval by the Secretary of State.
Subsequent claims that are approved by the Secretary of State within
the same 240-day period shall similarly not be paid until the
expiration of the 240-day period. Upon the expiration of the 240-day
period, the Secretary of State shall pay all approved claims from
that 240-day period in full unless the deposit is insufficient, in
which case each approved claim shall be paid a pro rata share of the
deposit.
(g) When the Secretary of State approves the first claim against a
particular deposit after the expiration of a 240-day period, the
date of approval of that claim shall begin a new 240-day period to
which subdivision (f) shall apply with respect to any amount
remaining in the deposit.
(h) After a deposit is exhausted, no further claims shall be paid
by the Secretary of State. Claimants who have had their claims paid
in full or in part pursuant to subdivision (f) or (g) shall not be
required to return funds received from the deposit for the benefit of
other claimants.
(i) When a deposit has been made in lieu of a bond, the amount of
the deposit shall not be subject to attachment, garnishment, or
execution with respect to an action or judgment against the
employment agency, other than as to an amount as no longer needed or
required for the purpose of this title that would otherwise be
returned to the employment agency by the Secretary of State.
(j) The Secretary of State shall retain a cash deposit for two
years from the date the Secretary of State receives written
notification from the assignor of the deposit that the assignor has
ceased to engage in the business of an employment agency or has filed
a bond pursuant to subdivision (a), provided that there are no
outstanding claims against the deposit. This written notice shall
include all of the following: (1) name, address, and telephone number
of the assignor; (2) name, address, and telephone number of the bank
at which the deposit is located; (3) account number of the deposit;
and (4) a statement whether the assignor is ceasing to engage in the
business of an employment agency or has filed a bond with the
Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall forward an
acknowledgment of receipt of the written notice to the assignor at
the address indicated therein, specifying the date of receipt of the
written notice and anticipated date of release of the deposit,
provided there are no outstanding claims against the deposit.
(k) A judge of a superior court may order the return of the
deposit prior to the expiration of two years upon evidence
satisfactory to the judge that there are no outstanding claims
against the deposit or order the Secretary of State to retain the
deposit for a sufficient period beyond the two years pursuant to
subdivision (j) to resolve outstanding claims against the deposit
account.
(l) The Secretary of State shall charge a filing fee not to exceed
the cost of filing the bond or deposit filed in lieu of a bond as
set forth in Section 995.710 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(m) The Secretary of State shall enforce the provisions of this
chapter that govern the filing and maintenance of bonds and deposits
in lieu of bonds.

1812.504. (a) Every employment agency shall give a written contract
to every jobseeker from whom a fee or deposit is to be received,
whether directly or indirectly. The original of the contract shall be
given to the jobseeker at the time the jobseeker signs the contract
and before the employment agency accepts any fee or deposit or the
jobseeker becomes obligated to pay any such fee or deposit. The
contract shall contain all of the following:
(1) The name, address, and telephone number of the employment
agency, and, if the employment agency has more than one office or
location, the address and telephone number of the principal office or
location providing services to the jobseeker.
(2) The name and address of the person giving the order for help,
the date and consecutive number of the receipt of the order by the
agency, and its manner of transmission.
(3) The name of the jobseeker, the name and address of the person
to whom the jobseeker is sent for employment, and the address where
the jobseeker is to report for employment.
(4) The date and consecutive number of the contract.
(5) The amount of the fee to be charged and to be collected from
the jobseeker, including a statement that if the employment is
terminated, the fee may not exceed gross earnings of the jobseeker in
that employment, and the amount of the fee paid or advanced by the
prospective employer and by whom paid or advanced.
(6) The kind of work or employment.
(7) The daily hours of work; the wages or salary, including any
consideration or privilege; the benefits; and any other conditions of
employment.
(8) If any labor trouble exists at the place of employment, that
fact shall be stated in the contract.
(9) A contract expiration date which shall not be later than 180
days from the date of the referral or signing of the contract,
whichever occurs first; however, a domestic agency operating as a
registry may enter into a continuing contract subject to termination
by written notice by either the domestic worker or the agency.
(10) Any other term, condition, or understanding agreed upon
between the agency and the jobseeker.
(11) The following statement, with the caption in type no smaller
than 10-point boldfaced type and the remainder in a size no smaller
than that generally used throughout the contract, and in full
capitals, boldface, or italics:

RIGHT TO REFUND

"If you pay all or any portion of a fee and fail to accept
employment, the employment agency shall, upon your request, return
the amount paid to you within 48 hours after your request for a
refund.
"If you leave employment for just cause or are discharged for
reasons other than misconduct connected with your work within 90 days
from the starting date of employment, the agency shall reduce your
fee to that payable for temporary employment and shall refund any
excess paid within 10 days of your request for a refund.
"No fee larger than that for temporary employment may be charged
to you for employment lasting 90 days or less unless the agency's fee
schedules, contracts, and agreements provide for a further charge if
you leave employment without just cause or are discharged for
misconduct in connection with your work.
"If any refund due is not made within the time limits set forth
above, the employment agency shall pay you an additional sum equal to
the amount of the refund."

(b) All contracts shall be dated and shall be made and numbered
consecutively, both copies to be signed by the jobseeker and the
person acting for the employment agency. The original shall be given
to the jobseeker and one copy shall be kept on file at the employment
agency.
(c) The full agreement between the parties shall be contained in a
single document containing those elements set forth in this section.
(d) When a referral is made by telephone the agency shall execute
the contract or receipt in triplicate and shall mail the original and
duplicate to the jobseeker on the day the referral is made, with
instructions that they be signed by the jobseeker and the duplicate
returned to the agency. The date of mailing the contract or receipt
to the jobseeker shall be entered thereon by the agency. The same
contract or receipt shall not be used for more than one referral.
(e) For purposes of this section, a "domestic agency operating as
a registry" means a domestic agency that engages in the business of
obtaining and filling commitments for domestic help.

1812.505. (a) (1) An employment agency shall provide a copy of the
agency's jobseeker fee schedule and payment terms to any jobseeker
from whom a fee or deposit is to be received, prior to the jobseeker
being interviewed by a counselor. The jobseeker fee schedule shall
indicate the percentage of both the projected annual and first month'
s total gross earnings represented by those fees.
(2) In the schedule, the various employments or salary ranges by
which the fee is to be computed or determined shall be classified,
and in each class the maximum fee shall be fixed and shall include
the charges of every kind rendered by the agency in each case or
transaction on behalf of the prospective employee. Changes in the
schedule may be made, but no change shall become effective until
posted for not less than seven days in a conspicuous place in the
agency.
(3) A copy of the schedule in effect shall be kept posted in the
employment agency in a conspicuous place, and the posted schedule and
the changes therein shall be in lettering or printing of not less
than standard pica capitals. The date of the taking effect of the
schedule and of each change therein shall appear on the posted
copies.
(4) A copy of all fee schedules, and of all changes therein, shall
be kept on file at the employment agency, retrospectively, for a
period of one year.
(b) No fee charged or collected shall be in excess of the fee as
scheduled.
(c) No employment agency shall accept, directly or indirectly, a
registration fee of any kind.
(d) No employment agency may take from a jobseeker a confession of
judgment, a promissory note or notes, or an assignment of wages to
cover its fees.
(e) The employment agency shall give a receipt to every jobseeker
from whom a deposit is received. No other deposit or prepayment of
any kind may be required by an agency. If the jobseeker accepts
employment, the deposit shall be applied to the fee to be paid by the
jobseeker.
(f) (1) If a jobseeker leaves employment for just cause or is
discharged for reasons other than misconduct connected with the
jobseeker's work within 90 days from the starting date of employment,
the agency shall reduce the fee payable by the jobseeker to that
payable for temporary employment under subdivision (g) and shall
refund any fee paid in excess of that amount.
(2) No charge may be made to or obligation to pay incurred by any
jobseeker beyond that authorized by subdivision (g) for employment
lasting 90 days or less, unless the agency's fee schedules,
contracts, and agreements specifically provide for a further charge
if the jobseeker leaves employment without just cause or is
discharged for misconduct in connection with his or her work, and
then only if lack of just cause or misconduct exists. Otherwise, the
agency shall retain or charge only the fee for temporary employment
for any employment lasting 90 days or less from the starting date of
employment.
(3) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) and this subdivision, in no
instance in which the employment accepted is subsequently terminated
shall the fee charged or obligation to pay incurred by a jobseeker be
greater than the total gross earnings of the jobseeker in that
employment. This provision shall be stated in all agency contracts
issued pursuant to Section 1812.504.
(g) The fee payable by the jobseeker for temporary employment
shall not exceed 1/90 of the fee for permanent employment for each
consecutive calendar day during the period that the jobseeker is
employed or compensated as though employed.
(h) (1) If a jobseeker accepts employment in which the jobseeker
is to be paid on the basis of straight commissions, or a drawing
account against commissions, or either a drawing account or salary
plus commissions, the fee payable by the jobseeker may be predicated
upon the projected total gross earnings during the first year of
employment as estimated by the employer.
(2) Upon the conclusion of a jobseeker's first 12 months of
employment, a computation of his or her actual total gross earnings
may be provided by the jobseeker to the agency, and, predicated upon
appropriate proof of earnings, an adjustment in the fee shall be made
in which either the agency shall refund to the jobseeker any excess
fee paid by him or her or the jobseeker shall pay to the agency any
deficiency thereon.
(3) If the jobseeker's employment is terminated prior to the
conclusion of the first 12 months of employment, the actual total
gross earnings of the jobseeker for the period of employment shall be
projected to 12 months on a pro rata basis as though the jobseeker
had been employed for the entire period of 12 months, and a
computation shall be made thereon. The fee paid or payable by the
jobseeker shall be predicated upon that computation as though the
jobseeker had been so employed.
(i) If an employment agency sends a jobseeker for employment and
the jobseeker accepts employment other than that position specified
in the bona fide order for employment to which the jobseeker was
sent, but with the same employer, then the agency shall be entitled
to a fee for the employment of the jobseeker, payable by the
jobseeker, computed under the terms of the fee schedule in effect in
the agency at the time of referral, provided that the jobseeker
accepts employment within 180 days of the date of referral. The
expiration date of the referral shall be stated in the contract.
In interagency disputes concerning the earning of a fee for
placement of a jobseeker, the fee shall be earned by the agency
responsible for the jobseeker being placed. A reasonable effort shall
be made by the billing agency that it is entitled to the fee. The
jobseeker shall be responsible for only one full fee for any single
placement, and that fact shall be so stated in the contract.
(j) (1) No employment agency shall divide fees with an employer,
an agent, or other employee of an employer or person to whom help is
furnished.
(2) No employment agency shall charge any jobseeker a fee for
accepting employment with such employment agency or any subsidiary of
that agency.
(3) No employment agency shall charge any jobseeker a fee when
help is furnished to an employer, an agent, any employee of an
employer, a member, or person who has a financial interest in the
employment agency.

1812.506. (a) If a jobseeker paying or becoming obligated to pay a
fee, or making a deposit on a fee for placement fails to accept
employment, the employment agency shall, upon request by the
jobseeker, repay the amount of the deposit or fee to the jobseeker.
Unless the deposit is returned within 48 hours after request, the
employment agency shall pay to the jobseeker an additional sum equal
to the amount of the deposit. A notice to this effect shall be
inserted in all contracts between the agency and the jobseeker, and
in all receipts given to the jobseeker for cash payment in advance of
employment, and in the schedule of fees posted in the office of the
agency.
(b) (1) All employment provided by any employment agency to any
jobseeker from whom a fee is to be received shall be considered
permanent only if it lasts longer than 90 days. If a jobseeker leaves
the job or is discharged within the first 90 days of employment, the
agency shall make a refund or reduction of the fee to the temporary
fee amount unless the agency's fee schedules, contracts, and
agreements specifically provide for a further charge if the jobseeker
leaves employment without just cause or is discharged for misconduct
in connection with his or her work.
(2) "Just cause" or "discharge for reasons other than misconduct"
includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(A) Wages or salary less than that agreed upon between the
jobseeker and the employer.
(B) Receiving a payroll check which is not honored by the bank
upon which it was drawn.
(C) Working hours, working days, or working shifts significantly
different than those agreed upon between the jobseeker and the
employer.
(D) Receiving a work assignment, subsequent to accepting the job,
which is substantially different from that agreed upon between the
jobseeker and the employer.
(E) Being assigned to a job location different from that which was
agreed upon between the jobseeker and the employer.
(F) The jobseeker's lack of physical ability to perform duties
connected with the position agreed upon between the jobseeker and the
employer unless the provisions of subparagraph (E) of paragraph (3)
apply.
(G) A lockout or strike causing loss of pay.
(H) The jobseeker's lack of physical ability to perform duties
connected with the position unless the provisions of subparagraph (E)
of paragraph (3) apply.
(J) The jobseeker's entry into active service in the armed forces.
(K) Physical or economic destruction of the business.
(L) The death of the jobseeker (any refund in that case shall be
paid to the estate of the jobseeker).
(3) "Lack of just cause" or a discharge for "misconduct" includes,
but is not limited, to:
(A) Abandonment of the job by the jobseeker.
(B) Conviction of the jobseeker, subsequent to employment, of a
crime when conviction temporarily or permanently prevents the
jobseeker from fulfilling the terms of employment.
(C) Willful violation of lawful company policies or rules by the
jobseeker.
(D) Willful failure to perform lawful duties appropriate to
employment by the jobseeker.
(E) Acts of the jobseeker constituting misrepresentation or
withholding of information directly related to education, work
experience, responsibility, physical ability, or training, that would
have caused the employer to refuse employment.
(c) (1) Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (a), a refund
when due shall be made within 10 working days after request therefor
from the jobseeker.
(2) Alternatively, if the decision of the agency is not to make a
refund, the agency shall notify the jobseeker in writing, within the
10-day working period specified in paragraph (1), as to the specific
reasons why the refund is not being made.
(3) If the agency fails to properly notify the jobseeker pursuant
to paragraph (2) or fails to tender a refund within the time allowed,
the agency shall be liable to the jobseeker in the amount of an
additional sum equal to the amount of the refund.

1812.507. (a) No employment agency shall accept a fee from any
jobseeker, or send any jobseeker for employment, without having
obtained, orally or in writing, a bona fide job order for employment.
(b) An agency shall identify itself as an employment agency to the
employer in all instances in which it contacts an employer for the
purpose of soliciting a job order. All job orders shall be recorded
in writing. A job order for employment shall be considered to have
been given by an employer to an employment agency under the following
conditions:
(1) The employer, or his or her agent, orally or in writing,
registers a request or gives permission that the agency recruit or
refer jobseekers who meet the employer's stated job specifications
and the employer furnishes such information as required by
subdivision (a) of Section 1812.504. A job order is valid for the
referral of any qualified jobseeker until it is filled or canceled by
the employer, and may serve as the basis for agency advertising. The
agency is required to recontact the employer within 30 days to
ensure that the position is still vacant prior to any additional
advertising or referral of jobseekers.
(2) When an agency has brought the qualifications of a specific
jobseeker to the attention of an employer and the employer has
expressed interest in that jobseeker either by agreeing to interview
the jobseeker, or by requesting that the agency furnish him or her
with the jobseeker's resum