118 HR 8911 IH: Worker Rights and Support Act
U.S. House of Representatives
2024-06-28
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I
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8911
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 28, 2024
Mrs. Watson Coleman (for herself, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Norton, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Deluzio, Ms. Wild, Mr. Thanedar, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Ms. Omar, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Ms. Wilson of Florida, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Bowman, Ms. Brown, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Ms. Velázquez, Ms. Adams, Mr. Lynch, Mr. García of Illinois, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Ross, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Ivey, Ms. Bush, Ms. Tokuda, and Ms. Stevens) 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 require employers to allow employees to take meal, rest, restroom, and medical breaks, and for other purposes.
1.

Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Worker Rights and Support Act”.
2.

Required breaks for employees
(a)

In general
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 7 (29 U.S.C. 207) the following:
“8.

Required breaks for employees
(a)

Meal breaks
(1)

In general
Except as provided in paragraph (3)(A) and subsection (e), an employer shall provide, for each 6-hour period of work performed by an employee, a period of break time of not less than 30 minutes during such period of work in which the employee may consume a meal.
(2)

Payment
—
(A)

In general
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), an employer shall not be required to compensate an employee for a break required under paragraph (1).
(B)

Paid breaks
In the case in which an employee is not fully relieved of all work or expectation of work, or is not free to leave the premises or work site during a break provided under paragraph (1), the employer shall compensate the employee for the full period of break time under paragraph (1), at a rate that is not less than one and one-half times the regular rate at which the employee is employed by the employer.
(3)

Waiver
(A)

In general
The period of break time under paragraph (1) may be waived by consent of the employee.
(B)

Waiver may not be compelled
An employer may not compel, or attempt to compel, an employee to waive the period of break time provided under paragraph (1).
(b)

Rest and restroom breaks
(1)

In general
Except as provided in subsection (e), an employer shall provide, during each 4-hour period of work performed by an employee, a period of break time that is the longer of—
(A)
10 minutes; or
(B)
a reasonable period of time to utilize the nearest functioning and accessible restroom.
(2)

Rate of compensation
An employer shall compensate an employee for the break time described in paragraph (1) at the regular rate at which the employee is employed by the employer.
(c)

Medical breaks
(1)

In general
Except as provided in subsection (e), an employer shall provide to an employee periods of break time, not to exceed 20 minutes each, that the employee may reasonably require due to a medical condition communicated to the employer by the health care provider either directly from such provider or indirectly from the employee.
(2)

Rate of compensation
An employer shall compensate an employee for the break time described in paragraph (1) at the regular rate at which the employee is employed by the employer.
(d)

Time worked
Break time paid under this section shall be considered as time worked.
(e)

Collective bargaining agreements; State laws
The requirements under this section shall not—
(1)
supersede any provision in a collective bargaining agreement; or
(2)
preempt any State law that provides greater protections to employees than the protections provided to employees under this section.”.
(b)

Enforcement
(1)

Prohibited act
Section 15(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 215(a)) is amended—
(A)
in paragraph (1), by striking “or section 7” and inserting “, section 7, or section 8”;
(B)
in paragraph (6), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(C)
by adding at the end the following:
“(7)
to violate any of the provisions of section 8.”.
(2)

Penalties
Section 16 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216) is amended—
(A)
in subsection (b), by inserting after the third sentence the following: “Any employer who violates the provisions of section 8 shall be liable for such legal or equitable relief as may be appropriate to effectuate the purposes of such section.”;
(B)
in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following: “The authority and requirements described in this subsection shall also apply with respect to a violation of section 8, as appropriate, and the employer shall be liable for such legal or equitable relief as may be appropriate to effectuate the purposes of such section.”; and
(C)
in subsection (e)(2), by striking “section 6 or 7, relating to wages,” and inserting “section 6, 7, or 8, relating to wages or break time,”.
(3)

Statute of limitations
Section 6 of the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 (29 U.S.C. 255) is amended, in the matter preceding subsection (a), by inserting “(and any cause of action to enforce section 8 of such Act)” after “under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended”.
(c)

Conforming amendment
Section 10 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 210) is repealed.