[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3070 Introduced in House (IH)]
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3070
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to ensure the protection
of employees in travelling sales crews, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 9, 2001
Mr. Petri (for himself and Mr. Lantos) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to ensure the protection
of employees in travelling sales crews, 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 ``Travelling Sales Crew Protection
Act''.
SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938 TO CERTAIN
OUTSIDE SALESMEN.
(a) In General.--Section 13 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938
(29 U.S.C. 213) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(k) For purposes of subsection (a)(1), and notwithstanding any
other provision of law, the term `outside salesman' does not include
any individual employed in the position of a salesman, if the
individual travels with a group of salespeople, including a supervisor,
team leader or crew leader, and the employees in the group do not
return to their permanent residences at the end of the work day.''.
(b) Limitation on Child Labor.--Section 12 of the Fair Labor
Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(e) No individual under 18 years of age may be employed in a
position requiring the individual to engage in door-to-door sales or in
related support work in a manner that requires the individual to remain
away from the individual's permanent residence for more than 24
hours.''.
SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF TRAVELLING SALES CREWS.
(a) Travelling Sales Crew Worker Defined.--(1) Except as provided
in paragraph (2), the term ``travelling sales crew worker'' means an
individual who--
(A) is employed as a salesperson or in related
support work;
(B) travels with a group of salespersons, including
a supervisor; and
(C) is required to be absent overnight from his or
her permanent place of residence.--
(2) Such term does not include--
(D) any individual who meets the requirements of
subparagraph (A) if such individual is travelling to a trade
show or convention; or
(E) any immediate family member of a travelling sales crew
employer.
(b) Secretary to Prescribe Rules.--Not later than 180 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor (hereinafter
in this Act, the ``Secretary'') shall prescribe rules governing the
protection of travelling sales crews. Such rules shall contain the
following requirements:
(1) Registration.--Each employer or supervisor of a
travelling sales crew worker must obtain a certificate of
registration from the Secretary. The Secretary shall prescribe
the manner of application and the standards for issuance for
such a certificate, including a reasonable fee for such
application.
(2) Employer requirements.--An employer of travelling sales
crew workers must carry out the following duties, in accordance
with the rules prescribed by the Secretary:
(A) Disclosure of conditions of employment.--The
employer must disclose to each travelling sales crew
worker employed by such employer, in writing,
information related to such worker's conditions of
employment, including the rate of pay, applicable pay
period, duration of employment, and whether the
employer provides workers' compensation insurance
coverage for the worker.
(B) Payment of wages, recordkeeping.--For each pay
period, the employer must--
(i) pay to each travelling sales crew
worker employed by such employer wages owed
such worker when due;
(ii) make such payment in United States
currency or by negotiable instrument; and
(iii) provide a written statement to each
travelling sales crew worker employed by such
employer, and maintain records (which must be
kept for at least 3 years), relating to the earnings of (and any
withholdings of earnings from) each such worker.
(C) Employer payment of employee business
expenses.--Other than a deduction from wages for the
actual cost to the employer of any board, lodging, or
other facilities provided by the employer to a
travelling sales crew worker employed by such employer,
the employer may not require the worker--
(i) to purchase any goods or services
solely from the employer; or
(ii) to pay for any of the employer's
business expenses.
(D) Vehicle insurance.--The employer must maintain
liability insurance coverage in compliance with any
applicable State law and sufficient (as determined by
the Secretary) to protect any travelling sales crew
workers transported in such a vehicle and to ensure
against liability to other persons and property arising
from the use of such vehicle for such purpose, except
that if the Secretary determines that such workers are
covered under an applicable workers' compensation
insurance policy provided by the employer, additional
vehicle insurance covering such workers may be waived
by the Secretary.
(E) Transportation safety.--The employer must
maintain any motor vehicle used to transport a
travelling sales crew worker employed by such employer
in compliance with any applicable Federal, State, or
local vehicle safety standards and with any additional
safety rules prescribed by the Secretary.
(F) Housing safety.--The employer must maintain any
lodging owned or controlled by the employer in
compliance with any applicable Federal, State, or local
housing, sanitation, health, building, or other safety
standards and with any additional safety rules
prescribed by the Secretary.
(G) Prohibition on discrimination.--An employer, or
an agent of the employer, may not intimidate, threaten,
restrain, coerce, blacklist, discharge, or in any
manner discriminate against any travelling sales crew
worker because such worker has, with just cause, filed
any complaint or instituted, or caused to be
instituted, any proceeding under or related to this
Act, or has testified or is about to testify in any
such proceeding, or because of the exercise, with just
cause, by such worker on behalf of the worker or others
of any right or protection afforded by this Act.
SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Criminal Sanctions.--An employer that willfully and knowingly
violates a rule prescribed under this Act shall be imprisoned for not
more than one year or fined not more than $10,000, or both. Upon
conviction for a subsequent violation of a rule prescribed under this
Act, an employer shall be imprisoned for not more than 3 years or fined
not more than $50,000, or both.
(b) Civil Penalty.--An employer that violates a rule prescribed
under this Act shall be liable to the United States for a civil penalty
of not more than $10,000 for each such violation. The Secretary may
assess and collect such civil penalty after a determination, made on
the record after opportunity for an agency hearing, of--
(1) liability for such violation; and
(2) the appropriate amount of the penalty, based on the
previous compliance record of the employer and the gravity of
the violation.
(c) Administrative Actions.--The Secretary shall prescribe rules
providing a procedure for an aggrieved travelling sales crew worker to
file an administrative complaint with the Secretary, which the
Secretary shall investigate and follow up with any appropriate
enforcement action against the employer of such worker, including
referral to the Attorney General of such employer for criminal
sanctions under subsection (a), the imposition by the Secretary of a
civil penalty under subsection (b), or the filing of a civil action on
behalf of such worker to enjoin such employer under subsection (d).
(d) Civil Action.--Any person aggrieved by a violation of a rule
prescribed under this Act (or the Secretary, on behalf of any such
person) may bring, in an appropriate United States district court
(without regard to the amount in controversy, the citizenship of the
parties, or the exhaustion of administrative remedies), a civil
action--
(1) to enjoin such violation;
(2) to recover the greater of--
(A) actual damages; or
(B) not more than $1,000 for each such violation
for each plaintiff (which may not exceed $1,000,000 for
all plaintiffs in a class); and
(3) for other equitable relief; and
(4) to recover the costs of the litigation and a reasonable
attorney fee.
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