Colorado § 24-50-104.5 - Compliance with federal laws.

§ 24-50-104.5. Compliance with federal laws.

(1) The state personnel director shall establish the general criteria and processes necessary for the state personnel system to fully comply with all applicable federal employment laws. Holidays and periods of authorized paid leave falling within a regularly scheduled workweek shall be counted as work time in determining overtime for employees performing essential law enforcement, highway maintenance, and other support services directly necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of patients, residents, and inmates of state institutions or state facilities.

(2) The state personnel director may establish an internal review process of alleged violations of such federal laws. Such a review shall be conducted in summary fashion on the basis of written material. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3) of this section, the state personnel director shall issue a written decision within ninety days after receipt of the written complaint. Any aggrieved party may also seek judicial review as specified by the applicable law.

(3) When an employee who has sought a review with the state personnel director pursuant to subsection (2) of this section also files an appeal with the state personnel board pursuant to section 24-50-123 or the Colorado civil rights division pursuant to section 24-50-125.3, the ninety-day period specified in subsection (2) of this section shall be tolled until there is a final agency action by the board only if the appeal filed with the board or the civil rights division arises out of the same incident as the review sought with the director, is filed before the expiration of the ninety-day period, and is filed before the director has issued a written decision.

Source: L. 98: Entire section added, p. 675, § 2, effective August 5. L. 2010: (2) amended and (3) added, (HB 10-1181), ch. 351, p. 1625, § 14, effective June 7.

ANNOTATION

This section is ambiguous as to whether an employer has the discretion to "de-authorize" previously authorized leave by cancelling or withdrawing its authorization. However, it is clear that the meaning of "authorized paid leave" in this section is time during which an employee has received formal approval to be away from work during scheduled work hours. Idowu v. Nesbitt, 2014 COA 97, 338 P.3d 1078.

A state agency may not retroactively cancel previously approved and taken leave time of essential state employees to avoid having to pay the employees overtime compensation pursuant to this section. It is clear that the general assembly intended to ensure that essential employees are appropriately compensated when they have to work beyond forty hours at unexpected or unusual work times, even if they did not actually work some of their normally scheduled hours that week. Idowu v. Nesbitt, 2014 COA 97, 338 P.3d 1078.

This section does not permit the state personnel director to enact regulations to administer the statute beyond ensuring that the state personnel system complies with federal employment laws. Idowu v. Nesbitt, 2014 COA 97, 338 P.3d 1078.