Principles for Public Safety Employment

2. E MPLOYEES W HO ARE E XCLUDED Employees of a police department, county sheriff's office, county probation office, city fire department, county fire department, or fire district whose principal duties are those of a telephone operator, clerk, stenographer, machinist, mechanic, or otherwise, and whose functions do not clearly fall within the scope of active law enforcement service are not entitled to receive 4850 benefits. 327 3. S COPE OF 4850 B ENEFITS The key to the determination whether an officer is entitled to continue to receive a particular benefit whether that benefit would be included in “salary” for the purposes of the statute. Section 4850 does not define “salary.” Moreover, there are no cases which have discussed whether investigative pay, bilingual pay, a vehicle allowance, and/or a clothing allowance are properly considered elements of an officer’s salary for purposes of Labor Code § 4850. Under the ordinary rules of statutory interpretation the term “salary” must be given its “usual and ordinary meaning.” If there is no ambiguity, then it will be presumed that “the lawmakers meant what they said, and the plain meaning governs. If, however, the statutory terms are ambiguous, then extrinsic sources may be considered and the language will be given the construction that “comports most closely with the apparent intent of the Legislature, with a view to promoting rather than defeating the general purpose of the statute, and avoid an interpretation that would lead to absurd consequences.” 328 In interpreting unrelated provisions in the Education Code, the Court of Appeal has relied upon Webster’s Dictionary to supply the ordinary meaning of the term “salary” as “‘fixed compensation paid regularly . . . for services.” 329 Black’s Law Dictionary (6th Ed.) similarly defines “salary” as follows: “a reward or recompense for services performed. In a more limited sense, a fixed periodical compensation paid for services rendered. A stated compensation paid periodically as by the year, month, or other fixed period, in contrast to wages which are normally based on an hourly rate.” Given the apparent ambiguities regarding the meaning of the word “salary”, some consideration should be given to the intent of the Legislature in passing section 4850. According to long established case law, the Workmen’s Compensation Act “is to be liberally construed with the purpose of extending its benefits for the protection of persons injured in the course of their employment.” 330 Thus, the tendency will be towards including amounts within the definition of "salary" rather than excluding amounts. The Court of Appeal has held that fringe benefits may be considered part of salary for purposes of section 4850. 331 Sick leave, for example, may not be deducted from an employee’s balance while on 4850 leave. 332 The Court of Appeal in Johnson v. Contra Costa Fire Protection District held that holiday pay was included within the definition of salary for purposes of section 4850 where shift employees were guaranteed holiday pay whether or not they worked on the holiday. 333 In that case, the

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