[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 598 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 598

  To amend the National Labor Relations Act to provide for expedited 
 adjudication of unfair labor practice charges, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               March 17 (legislative day, March 3), 1993

Mr. Durenberger introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
         referred to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the National Labor Relations Act to provide for expedited 
 adjudication of unfair labor practice charges, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Justice for Permanently Displaced 
Striking Workers Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) when employers fail to bargain in good faith and hire 
        permanent replacements, the National Labor Relations Board and 
        its administrative law judges take too long to vindicate the 
        rights of striking workers guaranteed under the National Labor 
        Relations Act;
            (2) undue delay in the adjudication of unfair labor 
        practice charges during labor disputes where permanent 
        replacements have been hired also unfairly prejudices employers 
        by forcing them to pay striking workers unnecessarily large 
        backpay awards if the National Labor Relations Board or an 
        administrative law judge ultimately sustains an unfair labor 
        practice charge and issues a reinstatement order; and
            (3) the lack of timely adjudication of unfair labor 
        practice charges in connection with labor disputes where 
        permanent replacements have been utilized poses an obstacle to 
        continued stable labor relations in the United States.
    (b) Purposes.--It is the purpose of this Act--
            (1) to provide for the expedited adjudication of unfair 
        labor practice charges when permanent replacements have been 
        hired; and
            (2) to restore justice for striking workers exercising 
        their legal rights secured under the National Labor Relations 
        Act.

SEC. 3. FACILITATE ADJUDICATION OF UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICE CHARGES.

    (a) Priority of Cases.--Section 10(m) of the National Labor 
Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 160(m)) is amended--
            (1) by striking out ``(a)(3) or (b)(2)'' and inserting in 
        lieu thereof ``(a)(3), (a)(5), (b)(2), or (b)(3)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end thereof the following new 
        sentence: ``In cases where a collective bargaining agreement 
        has expired and a person alleges that a party to a collective 
        bargaining agreement has failed to negotiate in good faith as 
        required by the Act, and where permanent replacements have been 
        hired, an expedited investigation and adjudication procedure 
        shall be available as described in subsection (n).''.
    (b) Timetable for Adjudication.--Section 10 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 
160) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new 
subsection:
    ``(n)(1) In cases described in the last sentence of subsection (m), 
administrative law judges shall have 60 days in which to hold a hearing 
after a complaint has been filed under this section. After such hearing 
has occurred and the parties have filed their briefs with respect to 
such, the administrative law judge involved shall have not more than 60 
days to issue a decision with respect to such case.
    ``(2) A party in a case described in paragraph (1) shall have 30 
days in which to file a brief with the Board containing exceptions to 
the decision of an administrative law judge under such paragraph. Other 
parties shall have 15 days in which to file their briefs in response to 
such exceptions.
    ``(3) The Board shall have 90 days after the date on which a brief 
has been filed under paragraph (1), to issue a decision in the case. 
Such period may be extended for an additional 30 days if an oral 
argument is scheduled.
    ``(4) By mutual agreement of the parties, the timetables contained 
in paragraphs (1) through (3) may be extended as agreed upon.
    ``(5) If the administrative law judge fails to meet any deadline 
contained in this subsection, the administrative law judge shall notify 
the parties, the National Labor Relations Board, and the Committee on 
Labor and Human Resources of the Senate and explain the reasons for the 
delay. The notification and reasons for the delay shall be submitted by 
the administrative law judge for publication in the Federal Register.
    ``(6) If the National Labor Relations Board fails to meet any 
deadline in this subsection, the Chairman of the National Labor 
Relations Board shall notify the Committee on Labor and Human Resources 
of the Senate and explain the reasons for the delay. The notification 
and reasons for the delay shall be submitted by the National Labor 
Relations Board for publication in the Federal Register.''.

SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act shall become effective upon the date of enactment of this 
Act.

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