113 S2642 IS: Schedules That Work Act
U.S. Senate
2014-07-22
text/xml
EN
Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
1.
(a)
This Act may be cited as the Schedules That Work Act
.
(b)
Congress finds the following:
(1)
The vast majority of the United States workforce today is juggling responsibilities at home and at
work. Women
are primary breadwinners or co-breadwinners in 63 percent of families in
the United States and 26
percent of families with children are headed by single mothers.
(2)
Despite the dual responsibilities of today’s workforce, workers across the income spectrum have
very little ability to make changes to their work schedules when those
changes are
needed to accommodate family responsibilities. Only 27 percent of
employers allow all or most of their employees to periodically change
their starting and quitting times.
(3)
Although low-wage workers are most likely to be raising children on their own, as more than half of
mothers of young children in low-wage jobs are doing, low-wage workers
have
the least control over their work schedules and the most unpredictable
schedules. For example—
(A)
roughly half of low-wage workers reported very little or no control over the timing of the hours
they were scheduled to work;
(B)
many workers in low-wage jobs receive their schedules with very little advance notice and have work
hours that vary significantly from week to week or month to month;
(C)
some workers in low-wage jobs are sent home from work when work is slow without being paid for
their scheduled shift;
(D)
in some industries, the use of call-in shift
requirements—requirements that workers call in to work to find out whether they will be scheduled
to work later
that day—has become common practice; and
(E)
at the same time, 20 to 30 percent of workers in low-wage jobs struggle with being required to work
extra hours with little or no notice.
(4)
Unfair work scheduling practices make it difficult for low-wage workers to—
(A)
provide necessary care for children and other family members, including arranging child care;
(B)
qualify for and maintain eligibility for child care subsidies, due to fluctuations in income and
work hours, or keep an appointment with a child care provider, due to not
knowing how many hours or when the workers will be scheduled to work;
(C)
pursue workforce training;
(D)
get or keep a second job that some part-time workers need to make ends meet; and
(E)
arrange transportation to and from work.
(5)
Unpredictable and unstable schedules are prevalent in retail sales, food preparation and service,
and building cleaning occupations, which are among the
lowest-paid and fastest-growing occupations in the workforce today. For
workers
in those occupations, often difficult and sometimes abusive work
scheduling
practices combine with very low wages to make it extremely challenging to
make ends meet.
(6)
Retail sales, food preparation and service, and building cleaning occupations are among those most
likely to have unpredictable and unstable schedules. According to data
from
the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 66 percent of food service workers, 52
percent of retail workers, and 40 percent of janitors and housekeepers
know their schedules only a week or less in advance. The average variation
in work hours in a single month is 70 percent for food service workers, 50
percent for retail workers, and 40 percent for janitors and housekeepers.
(7)
Those are among the lowest-paid and fastest-growing occupations, accounting for 18 percent of
workers in the economy, some 23,500,000 workers. The median pay for
workers in those 3 occupations is between $9.15 and $10.44 per hour, and
women make up more than half of the workers in those occupations.
(8)
Employers that have implemented fair work scheduling policies that allow workers to have more
control over their work schedules, and provide more predictable and stable
schedules, have experienced significant benefits, including reductions in
absenteeism and workforce turnover, and increased employee morale and
engagement.
(9)
This Act is a first step in responding to the needs of workers for a voice in the timing of their
work hours and for more predictable schedules.
2.
As used in this Act:
(1)
Bona fide business reason
The term bona fide business reason means—
(A)
the identifiable burden of additional costs to an employer, including the cost
of productivity loss, retraining or hiring employees, or transferring
employees from one facility to another facility;
(B)
a significant detrimental effect on the employer’s ability to meet organizational needs or customer
demand;
(C)
a significant inability of the employer, despite best efforts, to reorganize work among existing
(as of the date of the reorganization) staff;
(D)
a significant detrimental effect on business performance;
(E)
insufficiency of work during the periods an employee proposes to work;
(F)
the need to balance competing scheduling requests when it is not possible to grant all such
requests
without a significant detrimental effect on the employer’s ability to meet
organizational needs; or
(G)
such other reason as may be specified by the Secretary of Labor (or the
corresponding administrative officer specified in section 8).
(2)
Career-related educational or training program
The term career-related educational or training program means an educational or training program or program of study offered by a public, private, or
nonprofit career and technical education school, institution of higher
education, or other entity that provides academic education, career and
technical
education, or training (including remedial education or English as a
second
language, as appropriate), that is a program that leads to a recognized
postsecondary
credential (as identified under section 122(d) of the Workforce Innovation
and
Opportunity Act), and provides career awareness information. The term
includes a program allowable under the Workforce Investment Act of
1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.), the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity
Act, the Carl D. Perkins
Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.), or
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.),
without regard to whether or not the program is funded under the
corresponding Act.
(3)
The term caregiver means an individual with the status of being a significant provider of—(A)ongoing care or education, including responsibility for
securing the ongoing care or education, of a child; or
(B)ongoing care, including responsibility for securing the ongoing care, of—(i)a person with a serious health condition who is in a family relationship with the individual; or
(ii)
a parent of the individual, who is age 65 or older.
(4)
The term child means a biological, adopted, or foster child, a stepchild, a legal ward, or a child of a person
standing in loco parentis to that child, who is—(A)under age 18; or(B)age 18 or older and incapable of self-care because of a mental
or physical disability.
(5)
(A)The term covered employer—(i)means any person engaged in commerce or in any industry or activity affecting commerce who employs
15 or more
employees (described in paragraph (7)(A));
(ii)
includes any person who acts, directly or indirectly, in the interest of such an employer to any of
the
employees (described in paragraph (7)(A)) of such employer;
(iii)
includes any successor in interest of such an employer; and
(iv)
includes an agency described in subparagraph (A)(iii) of section 101(4) of the
Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(4)), to which subparagraph (B)
of such section shall apply.(B)For purposes of determining the number of employees who work for a person described in subparagraph
(A)(i), all employees (described in paragraph (7)(A)) performing work for
compensation on a full-time,
part-time, or temporary basis shall be counted, except that if the
number of such employees who perform work for such a person for
compensation
fluctuates,
the number may be determined for a calendar year based upon
the average number of such employees who performed work for the person for
compensation during the
preceding calendar year.(C)In this paragraph, and paragraph (7), the term person has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
203).
(6)
The term domestic partner means the person recognized as being in a relationship with an employee under any domestic
partnership, civil union, or similar law of the State or political
subdivision of a State in which the employee resides.
(7)
The term employee means an individual who is—
(A)
an employee, as defined in section 3(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(e)),
who is not described in any of subparagraphs (B) through (G);
(B)
a State employee described in section 304(a) of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (42
U.S.C. 2000e–16c(a));
(C)
a covered employee, as defined in section 101 of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2
U.S.C. 1301), other than an applicant for employment;
(D)
a covered employee, as defined in section 411(c) of title 3, United States Code;
(E)
a Federal officer or employee covered under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title 5, United States
Code;
(F)an employee of the Library of Congress; or(G)an employee of the Government Accountability Office.
(8)
The term employer means a person—
(A)
who is—
(i)
a covered employer, as defined in paragraph (4), who is not described in any of clauses (ii)
through (vii);
(ii)
an entity employing a State employee described in section 304(a) of the Government Employee Rights
Act of 1991;
(iii)
an employing office, as defined in section 101 of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995;
(iv)
an employing office, as defined in section 411(c) of title 3, United States Code;
(v)
an employing agency covered under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title 5, United States Code;(vi)the Librarian of Congress; or(vii)the Comptroller General of the United States; and
(B)
who is engaged in commerce (including government), in the production of goods for commerce, or in
an
enterprise engaged in commerce (including government) or in the production
of goods for commerce.
(9)
The term family relationship means a relationship with a child, spouse, domestic partner, parent, grandchild, grandparent,
sibling, or parent of a spouse or domestic partner.
(10)
The term grandchild means the child of a child.
(11)
The term grandparent means the parent of a parent.
(12)
Minimum number of expected work hours
The term minimum number of expected work hours means the minimum number of hours an employee will be assigned to work on a weekly or monthly
basis.
(13)
The term parent means a biological or adoptive parent, a stepparent, or a person who stood in a parental
relationship to an employee when the employee was a child.
(14)
The term parental relationship means a relationship in which a person assumed the obligations incident to parenthood for a child
and discharged those obligations before the child reached adulthood.
(15)
The term part-time employee means an individual who works fewer than 30 hours per week on average during any 1-month period.
(16)
Retail, food service, or cleaning employee
(A)
The term retail, food service, or cleaning employee means an individual employee who is employed in any of the following occupations, as described by
the
Bureau of Labor Statistics Standard Occupational Classification System (as
in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act):
(i)
Retail sales occupations consisting of occupations described in 41–1010 and 41–2000, and all
subdivisions thereof, of such System, which
includes first-line supervisors of sales workers, cashiers, gaming change
persons and booth cashiers, counter and
rental clerks, parts salespersons, and retail salespersons.
(ii)
Food preparation and serving related occupations as described in 35–0000, and all subdivisions
thereof, of such System, which includes supervisors of food preparation
and serving workers, cooks and food preparation workers, food and
beverage serving workers, and other food preparation and serving related
workers.
(iii)
Building cleaning occupations as described in 37–2011, 37–2012 and 37–2019 of such System, which
includes janitors
and cleaners, maids and housekeeping cleaners, and building cleaning
workers.
(B)Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the term retail, food service, or cleaning employee does not include any person employed in a bona fide executive, administrative, or professional
capacity, as defined for purposes of section 13(a)(1) of the Fair Labor
Standards Act of 1938
(29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1)).
(17)
The term Secretary means the Secretary of Labor.
(18)
The term serious health condition has the meaning given the term in section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29
U.S.C. 2611).
(19)
The term sibling means a brother or sister, whether related by half blood, whole blood, or adoption, or as a
stepsibling.
(20)
The term split shift means a schedule of daily hours in which the hours worked are not consecutive, except that—(A)a
schedule in which the total time out for meals does not exceed one hour
shall not be treated as a split shift; and(B)a schedule in which the break in the employee's work shift is requested by the employee shall not
be treated as a split shift.(21)(A)The term spouse means a person with whom an individual entered into—(i)a marriage as defined or recognized under State
law in the State in which the marriage was
entered into; or(ii)in the case of a marriage entered into outside of any
State, a marriage that is recognized in the place where entered into and
could have been entered into in at least 1 State.(B)Same-sex or common law marriageSuch term includes an
individual in a same-sex or common law marriage that meets the
requirements of subparagraph (A).(22)The term State has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
203).
(23)
The term work schedule means those days and times within a work period when an employee is required by an employer to
perform the duties of the employee's employment for which the employee
will
receive compensation.
(24)
The term work schedule change means any modification to an employee’s work schedule, such as an addition or reduction of hours,
cancellation of a shift, or a change in the date or time of a work shift,
by an employer.
(25)
The term work shift means the specific hours of the workday during which an employee works.
(26)
(A)
The terms commerce and industry or activity affecting commerce have the meanings given the terms in section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29
U.S.C. 2611).
(B)
The term employ has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
203).
3.
Right to request and receive a flexible, predictable or stable work schedule
(a)
An employee may apply to the employee's employer to request a change in the terms and conditions of
employment
as they relate to—
(1)
the number of hours the employee is required to work or be on call for work;
(2)
the times when the employee is required to work or be on call for work;
(3)
the location where the employee is required to work;
(4)
the amount of notification the employee receives of work schedule assignments; and
(5)
minimizing fluctuations in the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work on a daily,
weekly,
or monthly basis.
(b)
Employer obligation To engage in an interactive process
(1)If an employee applies to the employee's employer to request a change in the
terms and conditions of employment as set forth in subsection (a), the
employer shall
engage in a
timely, good faith interactive process with the employee that includes a
discussion of potential schedule changes that would meet the employee’s
needs.(2)Such process shall result in—
(A)
either granting or denying the request;
(B)
in the event of a denial, considering alternatives to the proposed change that might meet
the employee’s needs and granting or denying a request for an alternative
change in the terms and conditions of employment as set forth in
subsection (a); and
(C)
in the event of a denial, stating the reason for denial.
(3)If information provided by the employee making a request under this section requires
clarification, the employer
shall explain what further information is needed and give the employee
reasonable time to produce the information.
(c)
Requests related to caregiving, enrollment in education or training, or a second job
If an employee makes a request for a change in the terms and conditions of employment as set forth
in subsection (a) because of a serious health condition of the
employee,
due to the employee’s responsibilities as a caregiver, or due to the
employee's enrollment in a
career-related educational or training program, or if a part-time employee
makes a request for such a change for a reason related to a second
job, the
employer shall grant the
request, unless the employer has a bona fide business reason for denying
the request.
(d)
If an employee makes a request for a change in the terms and conditions of
employment as set forth in subsection (a), for a reason other than those
reasons set forth in subsection (c), the employer may deny the request for
any
reason that is not unlawful. If the employer denies such a request, the
employer shall provide the employee with the reason for the
denial, including whether any such reason was a bona fide business reason.
4.
Requirements for reporting time pay, split shift pay, and advance notice of work schedules
(a)
Reporting time pay requirement
An employer shall pay a retail, food service, or cleaning employee—
(1)for at least 4 hours at the employee’s regular rate of pay for each day on which the retail, food
service, or cleaning employee reports for work, as required by the
employer,
but is given less than four hours of work, except that if the retail, food
service, or cleaning employee’s scheduled hours for a day are less than 4
hours,
such retail, food service, or cleaning employee shall be paid for the
employee’s scheduled hours for that day if given less than the scheduled
hours of work; and
(2)
for at least 1 hour at the employee’s regular rate of pay for each day the retail, food service,
or cleaning employee is given specific instructions to contact the
employee's
employer, or wait to be contacted by the employer, less than 24
hours in advance of the start of a potential work shift to determine
whether the employee must report to work for such shift.
(b)
Split shift pay requirement
An employer shall pay a retail, food service, or cleaning employee for one additional hour at the
retail, food service, or cleaning employee’s regular rate of pay for each
day during which the retail, food service, or cleaning employee works a
split shift.
(c)
Advance notice requirement
(1)
On or before a new retail, food service, or cleaning employee’s first day of work, the employer
shall inform the retail, food service, or cleaning employee in writing of
the employee's work schedule and the minimum number of expected work hours
the
retail, food service, or cleaning employee will be assigned to work per
month.
(2)
Providing notice of new schedules
Except as provided in paragraph (3), if a retail, food service, or cleaning employee’s work
schedule changes from the work schedule of which the retail, food service,
or cleaning employee was informed pursuant to paragraph (1), the employer
shall provide the retail, food service, or cleaning employee with the
employee's new work schedule not less than 14 days before the first day of
the
new work schedule. If the expected minimum number of work hours that a
retail,
food service, or cleaning employee will be assigned changes from the
number of which the employee was informed pursuant to paragraph (1), the
employer
shall also provide notification of that change, not less than 14 days in
advance of the first day this change will go into effect. Nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to prohibit an employer from providing
greater advance notice of a retail, food service, or cleaning employee’s
work schedule than is required under this section.
(3)
Work schedule changes made with less than 24 hours’ notice
An employer may make work schedule changes as needed, including by offering additional hours of
work to retail, food service, or cleaning employees beyond those
previously scheduled, but an employer shall be required to provide one
extra hour of pay at the retail, food service, or cleaning employee’s
regular rate for each shift that is changed with less than 24 hours’
notice, except in the case of the need to schedule the retail, food
service, or cleaning employee due to the unforeseen unavailability of a
retail, food service, or cleaning employee previously scheduled to work
that shift.
(4)
The notifications required under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall be made to the employee in writing.
Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as prohibiting an employer
from using any additional means of notifying a retail, food service, or
cleaning employee of the employee's work schedule.
(5)
Schedule posting requirement
Every employer employing any retail, food service, or cleaning employee subject to this Act shall
post the schedule and keep it posted in a conspicuous place in every
establishment where such retail, food service, or cleaning employee is
employed so as to permit the employee to observe readily a copy.
Availability of
that schedule by electronic means accessible by all retail, food service,
or cleaning employees of that
employer shall be considered compliance with this
subsection.
(6)
Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prevent an employer from allowing a retail, food
service, or cleaning employee to work in place of another employee who has
been scheduled to work a particular shift as long as the change in
schedule is mutually agreed upon by the employees. An employer shall not
be subject to the requirements of paragraph (2) or (3) for such voluntary
shift
trades.
(d)The requirements in subsections (a), (b), and (c) shall not apply during periods when regular
operations of the employer are suspended due to events beyond the
employer’s control.
5.
(a)
It shall be unlawful for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise or the
attempt to exercise, any right of an employee as set forth in section 3 or
of a retail, food service, or cleaning employee as set forth in section 4.
(b)
It shall be unlawful for any employer to discharge, threaten to discharge, demote, suspend, reduce
work hours of, or take any other adverse employment action against any
employee in retaliation for exercising the rights of an employee under
this Act or opposing any practice made unlawful by this Act. For purposes
of section 3, such retaliation shall include taking an adverse employment
action against any employee on the basis of that employee’s eligibility or
perceived eligibility to request or receive a change in the terms and
conditions of employment, as described in such section, on the basis of a
reason set forth in section 3(c).
(c)
Interference with Proceedings or Inquiries
It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any
individual because such individual—
(1)
has filed any charge, or has instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding, under or related
to this Act;
(2)
has given or is about to give, any information in connection with any inquiry or proceeding
relating to any right provided under this Act; or
(3)
has testified, or is about to testify, in any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided
under this Act.
6.
(a)
(1)
To ensure compliance with this Act, or any regulation or order issued under this Act, the Secretary
shall have, subject to paragraph (3), the investigative authority
provided under section 11(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29
U.S.C. 211(a)).
(2)
Obligation to keep and preserve records
Each employer shall make, keep, and preserve records pertaining to compliance with this Act in
accordance with regulations issued by the Secretary under section 8.
(3)
Required submissions generally limited to an annual basis
The Secretary shall not under the authority of this subsection require any employer to submit to
the
Secretary any books or records more than once during any 12-month period,
unless the Secretary has reasonable cause to believe there may exist a
violation of this Act or any regulation or order issued pursuant to this
Act, or is
investigating a charge pursuant to subsection (c).
(4)
For the purposes of any investigation provided for in this section, the Secretary shall have the
subpoena authority provided for under section 9 of the Fair Labor
Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 209).
(b)
Civil action by employees
(1)
Any employer who violates section 5(a) (with respect to a right set forth in section 4) or
subsection (b) or (c) of section 5 (referred to in this section as a covered provision
) shall be liable to any employee affected for—
(A)
damages equal to the amount of—
(i)
any wages, salary, employment benefits (as defined in section 101 of the Family and Medical Leave
Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611)), or other compensation denied, lost, or owed
to such
employee by reason of the violation; or
(ii)
in a case in which wages, salary, employment benefits (as so defined), or other compensation have
not been denied,
lost, or owed to the employee, any actual monetary losses sustained by the
employee as a direct result of the violation;
(B)
interest on the amount described in subparagraph (A) calculated at the prevailing rate;
(C)
an additional amount as liquidated damages equal to the sum of the amount described in subparagraph
(A) and the interest described in subparagraph (B), except that if an
employer who has violated a covered provision proves to the satisfaction
of the
court that the act or omission which violated the covered provision was
in good
faith and that the employer had reasonable grounds for believing that the
act
or omission was not a violation of a covered provision, such court may, in
the
discretion of the court, reduce the amount of liability to the amount and
interest determined under subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; and
(D)
such equitable relief as may be appropriate, including employment, reinstatement, and promotion.
(2)
An action to recover the damages or equitable relief set forth in paragraph (1) may be maintained
against any employer (including a public agency) in any Federal or State
court of competent jurisdiction by any one or more employees for and on
behalf of—
(A)
the employees; or
(B)
the employees and other employees similarly situated.
(3)
The court in such an action shall, in addition to any judgment awarded to the plaintiff, allow a
reasonable attorney’s fee, reasonable expert witness fees, and other costs
of the action to be paid by the defendant.
(4)
The right provided by paragraph (2) to bring an action by or on behalf of any employee shall
terminate on the filing of a complaint by the Secretary in an action under
subsection (c)(3) in which a recovery is sought of the damages described
in paragraph (1)(A) owing to an employee by an employer liable
under paragraph (1) unless the action described is dismissed without
prejudice on motion of the Secretary.
(c)
(1)
The Secretary shall receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve complaints of violations of this
Act in the same manner that the Secretary receives, investigates, and
attempts to resolve complaints of violations of sections 6 and 7 of the
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206 and 207), and may issue an
order making determinations, and assessing a civil penalty described in
paragraph (3) (in accordance with paragraph (3)), with respect to such an
alleged violation.
(2)
An affected person who takes exception to an order issued under paragraph (1) may request review of
and a decision regarding such an order by an administrative law judge. In
reviewing the order, the administrative law judge may hold an
administrative hearing concerning the order, in accordance with the
requirements of sections 554, 556, and 557 of title 5, United States Code.
Such hearing
shall be conducted expeditiously. If no affected person requests such
review within 60 days after the order is issued under paragraph (1), the
order shall be considered to be a final order that is not subject to
judicial
review.(3)An employer who willfully and repeatedly violates—(A)paragraph (1), (4), or (5) of section 4(c) shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount to be
determined by the Secretary, but not to exceed $100 per violation; and(B)subsection (b) or (c) of section 5 shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount to be
determined by the Secretary, but not to exceed $1,100 per violation.
(4)
The Secretary may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction on behalf of aggrieved
employees to—
(A)
restrain violations of this Act;
(B)
award such equitable relief as may be appropriate, including employment, reinstatement, and
promotion; and
(C)
in the case of a violation of a covered provision, recover the damages and interest described in
subparagraphs (A) through (C) of subsection (b)(1).
(d)
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2), an action may be brought under this section not later than 2
years after the date of the last event constituting the alleged violation
for which the action is brought.
(2)
In the case of such action brought for a willful violation of section 5, such action may be
brought within 3 years of the date of the last event constituting the
alleged violation for which such action is brought.
(3)
In determining when an action is commenced by the Secretary under this section for the purposes of
this subsection, it shall be considered to be commenced on the date when
the complaint is filed.(e)Other Administrative Officers(1)In the case of employees described in section 2(7)(C), the authority of the Secretary under this
Act shall be exercised by the Board of Directors of the Office of
Compliance.(2)President; Merit Systems Protection BoardIn the case of employees described in section 2(7)(D), the authority of the Secretary under this
Act shall be exercised by the President and the Merit Systems Protection
Board.(3)Office of Personnel ManagementIn the case of employees described in section 2(7)(E), the authority of the Secretary under this
Act shall be exercised by the Office of Personnel Management.(4)In the case of employees of the Library of Congress, the authority of the Secretary under this Act
shall be exercised by the Librarian of Congress.(5)In the case of employees of the Government Accountability Office, the authority of the Secretary
under this Act shall be exercised by the Comptroller General of the United
States.
7.
(a)
Each employer shall post and keep posted, in conspicuous places on the premises of the employer
where notices to employees and applicants for employment are customarily
posted, a notice, to be prepared or approved by the Secretary (or the
corresponding administrative officer specified in section 8) setting forth
excerpts
from, or summaries of, the pertinent provisions of this Act and
information pertaining to the filing of a complaint under this Act.
(b)
Any employer that willfully violates this section may be assessed a civil money penalty not to
exceed $100 for each separate offense.8.(a)Except as provided in subsections (b) through (f), not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue such regulations as may
be necessary to implement this Act.(b)(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Board of Directors of the
Office of Compliance shall issue such regulations as may be necessary to
implement this Act with respect to employees described in section 2(7)(C).(2)In prescribing the regulations, the Board shall take into consideration the enforcement and
remedies provisions concerning the Board, and applicable to rights and
protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611
et seq.), under the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2
U.S.C. 1301 et seq.).(3)The regulations issued under paragraph (1) to implement this Act shall be the same as substantive
regulations issued by the Secretary to implement this Act, except to the
extent that the Board may determine, for good cause shown and stated
together with the regulations issued by the Board, that a modification of
such substantive regulations would be more effective for the
implementation of the rights and protections under this Act.(c)(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall issue such
regulations as may be necessary to implement this Act with respect to
employees described in section 2(7)(D).(2)In prescribing the regulations, the President shall take into consideration the enforcement and
remedies provisions concerning the President and the Merit Systems
Protection Board, and applicable to rights and protections under the
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, under
chapter 5 of title 3, United States Code.(3)The regulations issued under paragraph (1) to implement this Act shall be the same as substantive
regulations issued by the Secretary to implement this Act, except to the
extent that the President may determine, for good cause shown and stated
together with the regulations issued by the President, that a modification
of such substantive regulations would be more effective for the
implementation of the rights and protections under this Act.(d)Office of Personnel Management(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Office of Personnel Management
shall issue such regulations as may be necessary to implement this Act
with respect to employees described in section 2(7)(E).(2)In prescribing the regulations, the Office shall take into consideration the enforcement and
remedies provisions concerning the Office under subchapter V of chapter
63 of title 5, United
States Code.(3)The regulations issued under paragraph (1) to implement this Act shall be the same as substantive
regulations issued by the Secretary to implement this Act, except to the
extent that the Office may determine, for good cause shown and stated
together with the regulations issued by the Office, that a modification of
such substantive regulations would be more effective for the
implementation of the rights and protections under this Act.(e)(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Librarian of Congress shall
issue such regulations as may be necessary to implement this Act with
respect to employees of the Library of Congress.(2)In prescribing the regulations, the Librarian shall take into consideration the enforcement and
remedies provisions concerning the Librarian of Congress under title I of
the Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611 et seq.).(3)The regulations issued under paragraph (1) to implement this Act shall be the same as substantive
regulations issued by the Secretary to implement this Act, except to the
extent that the Librarian may determine, for good cause shown and stated
together with the regulations issued by the Librarian, that a modification
of such substantive regulations would be more effective for the
implementation of the rights and protections under this Act.(f)(1)Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall
issue such regulations as may be necessary to implement this Act with
respect to employees of the Government Accountability Office.(2)In prescribing the regulations, the Comptroller General shall take into consideration the
enforcement and remedies provisions concerning the Comptroller General
under title I of the Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993.(3)The regulations issued under paragraph (1) to implement this Act shall be the same as substantive
regulations issued by the Secretary to implement this Act, except to the
extent that the Comptroller General may determine, for good cause shown
and stated together with the regulations issued by the Comptroller
General, that a modification of such substantive regulations would be more
effective for the implementation of the rights and protections under this
Act.
9.
Research, education, and technical assistance program
(a)
The Secretary shall provide information and technical assistance to employers, labor organizations,
and the general public concerning compliance with this Act.
(b)
In order to achieve the objectives of this Act—
(1)
the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of
Labor, shall issue guidance on compliance with this Act regarding
providing a flexible, predictable, or stable work environment through
changes in the terms and conditions of employment as provided in
section 3(a); and
(2)
the Secretary shall carry on a continuing program of research, education, and technical assistance,
including—
(A)(i)
conducting pilot programs that implement fairer work schedules, including by promoting cross
training, providing three weeks or more advance notice of schedules,
providing employees with a minimum number of hours of work, and using
computerized scheduling software to provide more flexible, predictable,
and
stable schedules for employees; and(ii)evaluating the results of such pilot programs for employees, employee's families, and employers;
(B)
publishing and otherwise making available to employers, labor organizations, professional
associations, educational institutions, the various communication media,
and the general public the findings of studies regarding fair work
scheduling policies and other materials for
promoting compliance with this Act;
(C)
sponsoring and assisting State and community informational and educational programs; and
(D)
providing technical assistance to employers, labor organizations, professional associations, and
other interested persons on means of achieving and maintaining compliance
with the provisions of this Act.
(c)
(1)
The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study on—
(A)the impact of difficult scheduling practices on employees and employers, including unpredictable
and unstable schedules and schedules over which employees have little
control, and particularly how these scheduling practices impact
absenteeism, workforce turnover, and employees' ability to meet their
caregiving responsibilities;
(B)
the prevalence in occupations not described in section 2(16)(A) of employees routinely receiving
inadequate advance notice of the shifts or hours of the employees, being
assigned split
shifts, being sent home from work prior to the completion of their
scheduled shift without being paid for the hours in their scheduled shift,
being assigned call-in shifts (where the employee is required to contact
the employer, or wait to be contacted by the employer, less than 24 hours
in advance of the potential work shift to determine whether the employee
must report to work), or being called into work outside of
scheduled hours;
(C)
the effects on employees in occupations not described in section 2(16)(A) of providing advance
notice of work schedules, reporting time pay when employees are sent home
without working their full scheduled shift or are assigned to call-in
shifts but
given no work for those shifts, and split shift pay when employees are
assigned split shifts; and
(D)
the effects on employers in occupations not described in section 2(16)(A) of providing advance
notice of work schedules, reporting time pay when employees are sent
home without working their full scheduled shift or assigned to call-in
shifts
but given no work for those shifts, and split shift pay when employees are
assigned split shifts.(2)Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the
United States shall
prepare and submit a report to the appropriate committees of Congress
concerning the initial results of the study conducted pursuant to
paragraph (1).
Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Comptroller General shall prepare and submit a follow-up report to such
committees concerning the results of such study.
10.
Rights retained by employees
This Act provides minimum requirements and shall not be construed to preempt, limit, or otherwise
affect the applicability of any other law, regulation, requirement,
policy, or standard that provides for greater rights for employees than
are required in this Act.
11.
This Act shall not apply to any employee covered by a bona fide collective bargaining agreement if
the terms of the collective bargaining agreement include terms that govern
work scheduling practices.
12.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as creating or imposing any requirement in conflict with any
Federal or State law or regulation (including the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), the Family and Medical
Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611 et seq.), the
National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.), and title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of
1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.)), nor shall anything in this Act be
construed to diminish or impair
the rights of an employee under any valid collective bargaining agreement.