The law applies to:

• Volunteer firefighters.
• Reserve peace officers.
• Emergency rescue personnel, which is defined as any person who is an officer, employee, or member of:
• A fire department, fire protection or firefighting agency of the federal government, California state government, local government, special district or other public or municipal corporation or political subdivision of California; or
• A sheriff’s department, police department or private fire department.
• A disaster medical response entity sponsored or requested by the state, whether the person is a volunteer or partly paid or fully paid, while they are actually engaged in providing emergency services.

Also, an employee who is a health care provider must notify his or her employer at the time they’re designated as emergency rescue personnel and then again when the employee learns that they will be deployed for emergency duty.2

Training Leave for Emergency Rescue Personnel

If you employ 50 or more people, you must allow temporary leaves of absence — up to a total of 14 days per calendar year — to engage in fire, law enforcement or emergency rescue training for employees who are:3

• Volunteer firefighters
• Reserve peace officers
• Emergency rescue personnel

Rights of Employees Returning From Volunteer Civil Service Leave

You cannot terminate, threaten with termination, demote, suspend or otherwise discriminate against an employee who takes time off to perform emergency duty as a volunteer firefighter, a reserve peace officer, or emergency rescue personnel or to engage in fire or law enforcement or emergency rescue training. An employee who suffers any of these consequences is entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits.The employee can file a claim with the DLSE.

1. Lab. Code sec. 230.3