[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8145 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8145
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for
prohibitions on employers relating to the recording and use of employee
images, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 17, 2022
Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for
prohibitions on employers relating to the recording and use of employee
images, 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 ``Professional Images Protection
Act''.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS RELATING TO RECORDING AND USE OF EMPLOYEE IMAGES.
(a) In General.--The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C.
201 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 7 the following new
section:
``SEC. 8. PROHIBITIONS RELATING TO RECORDING AND USE OF EMPLOYEE
IMAGES.
``(a) In General.--It shall be an unlawful practice for an
employer--
``(1) to record or use an image of any employee (including
photographs and audio or video recordings) unless--
``(A) prior to the recording of such image--
``(i) the employer discloses in writing to
the employee--
``(I) each person who will have
access to the image, including any
person not employed by the employer;
``(II) how the image will be used,
which must be for a work-related
purpose; and
``(III) when the image will be
used; and
``(ii) the employer obtains written consent
to record and use such image in accordance with
such disclosure; and
``(B) in any event the employer seeks to use an
image already recorded for a purpose not included in
such disclosure, the employer issues a new disclosure
in writing and obtains written consent for such new
purpose; or
``(2) to discharge or in any other manner retaliate against
any employee or prospective employee because the employee or
prospective employee--
``(A) opposed any act or practice made unlawful by
this section; or
``(B) took an action for which discrimination is
forbidden under section 15(a)(3).
``(b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to the recording
or use of any image in which it is impractical to obtain such consent,
including recordings of large gatherings or recordings made for
security purposes.
``(c) Application to Independent Contractors.--This section and
section 16(f) shall apply with respect to any contractor of an employer
in the same manner as such sections apply to the employees of such
employer.
``(d) Authority To Issue Regulations.--The Secretary of Labor shall
issue such regulations or other guidance as the Secretary considers
necessary to assist employers in the implementation of this section.''.
(b) Penalties.--Section 16 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(f)(1) Any person who violates the provisions of section 8
shall--
``(A) be subject to a civil penalty--
``(i) in the case of an employer with 100 employees
or fewer, of $20,000 for a first offense, increased by
an additional $10,000 for each subsequent offense;
``(ii) in the case of an employer with more than
100 employees but not more than 200 employees, of
$50,000 for a first offense, increased by an additional
$15,000 for each subsequent offense;
``(iii) in the case of an employer with more than
200 employees but not more than 500 employees, of
$100,000 for a first offense, increased by an
additional $20,000 for each subsequent offense; and
``(iv) in the case of an employer with more than
500 employees, of $300,000 for a first offense,
increased by an additional $25,000 for each subsequent
offense; and
``(B) be liable to each employee or prospective employee
who was the subject of the violation for special damages not to
exceed $10,000 plus attorneys' fees, and shall be subject to
such injunctive relief as may be appropriate.
``(2) An action to recover the liability described in paragraph
(1)(B) 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 or prospective employees for and on behalf of--
``(A) the employees or prospective employees; and
``(B) other employees or prospective employees similarly
situated.''.
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