<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><BillSummaries>
<item congress="116" measure-type="hr" measure-number="2474" measure-id="id116hr2474" originChamber="HOUSE" orig-publish-date="2019-05-02" update-date="2020-11-27">
<title>Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019</title>
<summary summary-id="id116hr2474v53" currentChamber="HOUSE" update-date="2020-11-27">
<action-date>2020-02-06</action-date>
<action-desc>Passed House</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p><strong>Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019</strong></p> <p>This bill expands various labor protections related to employees' rights to organize and collectively bargain in the workplace. Specifically, it </p> <ul> <li>revises the definition of employee, supervisor, and employer to broaden the scope of individuals covered by the fair labor standards; </li> <li>permits a labor organization to encourage participation of union members in strikes initiated by employees represented by a different labor organization (i.e., secondary strikes);</li> <li>terminates the right of employers to bring claims against unions that conduct such secondary strikes; </li> <li>permits the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to conduct economic analysis;</li> <li>allows collective-bargaining agreements to require all employees represented by the bargaining unit to contribute fees to the labor organization for the cost of such representation, notwithstanding a state law to the contrary;</li> <li>expands unfair labor practices to include prohibitions against replacement of, or discrimination against, workers who participate in strikes; </li> <li>makes it an unfair labor practice to require or coerce employees to attend employer meetings designed to discourage union membership; </li> <li>prohibits employers from entering into agreements with employees under which employees waive the right to pursue or a join collective or class-action litigation; and</li> <li>requires the NLRB to promulgate rules requiring employers to post notices of employees' labor rights and protections and establishes penalties for failing to comply with such requirement.</li> </ul> <p>The bill also addresses the procedures for union representation elections. Among other changes, the bill</p> <ul> <li>prohibits employers from participating in any NLRB representation proceedings,</li> <li>requires employers to provide a list of voters to the labor organization seeking to represent the bargaining unit in an NLRB-directed election,</li> <li>compels employers to bargain with a labor organization that has received a majority of valid votes for representation in an NLRB-directed election, and</li> <li>provides statutory authority for the requirement that the NLRB must set preelection hearings to begin not later than 8 days after notifying the labor organization of such a petition and set postelection hearings to begin not later than 14 days after an objection to a decision has been filed. </ul> <p>The bill modifies the protections against unfair labor practices that result in serious economic harm such as the discharge of an employee. Specifically, the bill</p><ul> <li>removes current limits on a court's ability to provide temporary injunctive relief upon a petition by the NLRB;</li> <li>expands the available remedies for employees subject to such harms to include two times the amount of actual damages (e.g., back pay), consequential damages; and punitive damages; and</li> <li>establishes a civil penalty in addition to any damage awards.</li> </ul> <p>The bill further prohibits employers from taking adverse actions against an employee, including employees with management responsibilities, in response to that employee participating in protected activities related to the enforcement of the prohibitions against unfair labor practices (i.e., whistleblower protections). Such protected activities include</p><ul> <li>providing information about a potential violation to an enforcement agency, </li> <li>participating in an enforcement proceeding, </li> <li>initiating a proceeding concerning an alleged violation or assisting in such a proceeding, or</li> <li>refusing to participate in an activity the employee reasonably believes is a violation of labor laws. </li> </ul> <p>The bill also specifies procedures for adjudicating complaints, including, filing requirements, criteria for making determinations of violations, types of available relief, evidentiary guidelines, and judicial review of NLRB determinations.</p> <p>The bill generally establishes penalties and permits injunctive relief against entities that fail to comply with NLRB orders and creates a private right of action for employees to bring claims against employers interfering with employees' rights to organize or join a labor organization.</p> <p>Additionally, the bill modifies the reporting requirements for employers engaged in arrangements with third-parties to persuade employees not to organize. Specifically, the bill narrows the scope of the exemption for arrangements that are considered legal advice or representation. </p> <p>The Government Accountability Office must analyze and report on comparative collective-bargaining practices in countries outside the United States.</p>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
<summary summary-id="id116hr2474v07" currentChamber="HOUSE" update-date="2020-01-07">
<action-date>2019-12-16</action-date>
<action-desc>Reported to House</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p><strong>Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019</strong></p> <p>This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act and related labor laws to extend protections to union workers. Specifically, it </p> <ul> <li>revises the definition of &quot;employee&quot; and &quot;supervisor&quot; to prevent employers from classifying employees as exempt from labor law protections,</li> <li>expands unfair labor practices to include prohibitions against replacement of or discrimination against workers who participate in strikes, </li> <li>makes it an unfair labor practice to require or coerce employees to attend employer meetings designed to discourage union membership, </li> <li>permits workers to participate in collective or class action litigation, </li> <li>allows injunctions against employers engaging in unfair labor practices involving discharge or serious economic harm to an employee, </li> <li>expands penalties for labor law violations, including interference with the National Labor Relations Board or causing serious economic harm to an employee, and </li> <li>allows any person to bring a civil action for harm caused by labor law violations or unfair labor practices.</li> </ul>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
<summary summary-id="id116hr2474v00" currentChamber="HOUSE" update-date="2019-11-07">
<action-date>2019-05-02</action-date>
<action-desc>Introduced in House</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p><strong>Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019</strong></p> <p>This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act and related labor laws to extend protections to union workers. Specifically, it </p> <ul> <li>revises the definition of &quot;employee&quot; and &quot;supervisor&quot; to prevent employers from classifying employees as exempt from labor law protections,</li> <li>expands unfair labor practices to include prohibitions against replacement of or discrimination against workers who participate in strikes, </li> <li>makes it an unfair labor practice to require or coerce employees to attend employer meetings designed to discourage union membership, </li> <li>permits workers to participate in collective or class action litigation, </li> <li>allows injunctions against employers engaging in unfair labor practices involving discharge or serious economic harm to an employee, </li> <li>expands penalties for labor law violations, including interference with the National Labor Relations Board or causing serious economic harm to an employee, and </li> <li>allows any person to bring a civil action for harm caused by labor law violations or unfair labor practices.</li> </ul>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
</item>
<dublinCore xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<dc:format>text/xml</dc:format>
<dc:language>EN</dc:language>
<dc:rights>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.</dc:rights>
<dc:contributor>Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress</dc:contributor>
<dc:description>This file contains bill summaries for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.</dc:description>
</dublinCore>
</BillSummaries>
