[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 6 (Wednesday, January 11, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E72-E74]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                   MACBRIDE PRINCIPLES BILL, H.R. 470

                                 ______


                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 11, 1995
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce the MacBride 
Principles Bill H.R. 470. I am pleased to be joined by my distinguished 
colleague, the gentleman from New York [Mr. Manton], as an original 
cosponsor of this important measure. I am also pleased to cochair the 
bipartisan ad hoc Committee for Irish Affairs with Mr. Manton.
  Fair employment for Catholics in Northern Ireland is an issue that 
has concerned me for a very long time. For example, in a letter as far 
back as July 20, 1979, I requested the Irish National Caucus to 
investigate hiring practices of United States companies in Northern 
Ireland. This was the first time this issue was raised by anyone in the 
U.S. Congress.
  The caucus investigation lead to a congressional bill H.R. 3465: 
``Requiring United States persons who conduct business or control 
enterprises in Northern Ireland to comply with certain fair employment 
principles,'' 1983. I was a proud cosponsor of that bill in time this 
led to the Irish National Caucus launching the MacBride Principles bill 
in November of 1984. On October 1, 1986, I was cosponsor of the 
congressional MacBride bill. This is the bill I proudly reintroduce 
today as the 104th Congress begins legislative business.
  This bill would prohibit United States companies in Northern Ireland 
from exporting their products back to the United States unless they are 
in compliance with the MacBride Principles.
  The MacBride Principles campaign in the United States has been the 
most effective effort ever against anti-Catholic discrimination in 
Northern Ireland. Informed observers would agree that it has played a 
key role in putting the issue of anti-Catholic discrimination on the 
front burner. It was instrumental in bringing about the British 
Government's Fair Employment Act of 1989.
  The MacBride Principles have won the support of the Irish Government, 
the European Parliament, and the President of the United States. Mr. 
Clinton as a candidate pledged during the 1992 Presidential campaign 
that he would support the principles. As President, on St. Patrick's 
Day in 1993 in the White House, Mr. Clinton reaffirmed his support for 
the principles. They have been passed into law in 16 States, including 
my own great State of New York. Over 40 cities have also passed laws or 
resolutions on the principles. Indeed, the U.S. Congress allowed the 
principles to become law for the District of Columbia on March 16, 
1993.
  Recently the Protestant and Catholic churches in Ireland joined with 
Protestant and Catholic churches of the United States of America and 
issued a call for fair employment and investment in Northern Ireland. 
This is what they said about the MacBride Principles.

       Many Americans support the MacBride Principles, as 
     amplified, as good faith, nonviolent means to promote fair 
     employment. We urge that any support of these amplified 
     principles, which offer positive values and focus on fair 
     employment, be joined with continued support for strong, 
     fair, employment measures and as an active commitment to 
     investment and job creation. The amplified principles, as 
     many of their advocates agree, should not be used to 
     discourage investment or encourage disinvestment.

  Since 1986, over 100 Members of Congress have declared their support 
for the MacBride principles, as has the current Clinton administration, 
as well. Now, surely with peace moving forward and political solutions 
being sought for Northern Ireland, it is time for Congress to pass the 
MacBride principles, and also incorporate the principles as part of any 
planned increase in economic development assistance and new United 
States investment 
[[Page E73]] we are encouraging into Northern Ireland in aid of the 
ongoing peace process.
  The methods we use to help address the twin problems of unemployment 
and discrimination, especially in the Catholic community, can and will 
play a important role in the chances for lasting peace and justice 
developing in Northern Ireland. For without a shared and equally 
distributed economic development, among both traditions, peace and 
justice may never take firm and lasting hold in Northern Ireland. The 
MacBride principles provide us a real tool to help being all these 
important goals to fruition, and avoid merely maintaining the totally 
unacceptable status quo of twice the level of Catholic unemployment in 
Northern Ireland.
  Accordingly, I urge my colleagues concerned about lasting peace and 
justice in Northern Ireland to support the bill we are introducing 
today. I request that the full text of this measure be included at this 
point in the Record.
                                H.R. 470

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Northern Ireland Fair 
     Employment Practices Act of 1995''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds the following:
       (1) Currently, overall unemployment in Northern Ireland is 
     approximately 13 percent, as compared
      to 9 percent in the rest of the United Kingdom.
       (2) Unemployment in the minority community in Northern 
     Ireland is 22.8 percent, and in some portions of the minority 
     community unemployment has historically exceeded 70 percent.
       (3) The British Government Fair Employment Commission 
     (F.E.C.), formerly the Fair Employment Agency (F.E.A.), has 
     consistently reported that a member of the minority community 
     is two times more likely to be unemployed than a member of 
     the majority community.
       (4) The Investor Responsibility Research Center (IRRC), 
     Washington, District of Columbia, lists 80 publicly held 
     United States companies doing business in Northern Ireland, 
     which employ approximately 11,000 individuals.
       (5) The religious minority population of Northern Ireland 
     is subject to discriminatory hiring practices by some United 
     States businesses which have resulted in a disproportionate 
     number of minority individuals holding menial and low-paying 
     jobs.
       (6) The MacBride Principles are a nine point set of 
     guidelines for fair employment in Northern Ireland which 
     establishes a corporate code of conduct to promote equal 
     access to regional employment but does not require 
     disinvestment, quotas, or reverse discrimination.

     SEC. 3. RESTRICTION ON IMPORTS.

       An article from Northern Ireland may not be entered, or 
     withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, in the customs 
     territory of the United States unless there is presented at 
     the time of entry to the customs officer concerned 
     documentation indicating that the enterprise which 
     manufactured or assembled such article was in compliance at 
     the time of manufacture with the principles described in 
     section 5.

     SEC. 4. COMPLIANCE WITH FAIR EMPLOYMENT PRINCIPLES.

       (a) Compliance.--Any United States person who--
       (1) has a branch or office in Northern Ireland, or
       (2) controls a corporation, partnership, or other 
     enterprise in Northern Ireland, in which more than twenty 
     people are employed shall take the necessary steps to insure 
     that, in operating such branch, office, corporation, 
     partnership, or enterprise, those principles relating to 
     employment practices set forth in section 5 are implemented 
     and this Act is complied with.
       (b) Report.--Each United States person referred to in 
     subsection (a) shall submit to the Secretary--
       (1) a detailed and fully documented annual report, signed 
     under oath, on showing compliance with the provisions of this 
     Act; and
       (2) such other information as the Secretary determines is 
     necessary.

     SEC. 5. MACBRIDE PRINCIPLES.

       The principles referred to in section 4 are the MacBride 
     Principles, which are as follows:
       (1) Increasing the representation of individuals from 
     underrepresented religious groups in the work force including 
     managerial, supervisory, administrative, clerical, and 
     technical jobs.--A workforce that is severely unbalanced may 
     indicate prima facie that full equality of opportunity is not 
     being afforded all segments of the community in Northern 
     Ireland. Each signatory to the MacBride Principles must make 
     every reasonable lawful effort to increase the representation 
     of underrepresented religious groups at all levels of its 
     operations in Northern Ireland.
       (2) Adequate security for the protection of minority 
     employees both at the workplace and while travelling to and 
     from work.--
      While total security can be guaranteed nowhere today in 
     Northern Ireland, each signatory to the MacBride 
     Principles must make reasonable good faith efforts to 
     protect workers against intimidation and physical abuse at 
     the workplace. Signatories must also make reasonable good 
     faith efforts to ensure that applicants are not deterred 
     from seeking employment because of fear for their personal 
     safety at the workplace or while travelling to and from 
     work.
       (3) The banning of provocative religious or political 
     emblems from the workplace.--Each signatory to the MacBride 
     Principles must make reasonable good faith efforts to prevent 
     the display of provocative sectarian emblems at their plants 
     in Northern Ireland.
       (4) All job openings should be advertised publicly and 
     special recruitment efforts made to attract applicants from 
     underrepresented religious groups.--Signatories to the 
     MacBride Principles must exert special efforts to attract 
     employment applications from the sectarian community that is 
     substantially underrepresented in the workforce. This should 
     not be construed to imply a diminution of opportunity for 
     other applicants.
       (5) Layoff, recall, and termination procedures should not 
     in practice favor a particular religious group.--Each 
     signatory to the MacBride Principles must make reasonable 
     good faith efforts to ensure that layoff, recall, and 
     termination procedures do not penalize a particular religious 
     group disproportionately. Layoff and termination practices 
     that involve seniority solely can result in discrimination 
     against a particular religious group if the bulk of employees 
     with greatest seniority are disproportionately from another 
     religious group.
       (6) The abolition of job reservations, apprenticeship 
     restrictions, and differential employment criteria which 
     discriminate on the basis of religion.--Signatories to the 
     MacBride Principles must make reasonable good faith efforts 
     to abolish all differential employment criteria whose effect 
     is discrimination on the basis of religion. For example, job 
     reservations, and apprenticeship regulations that favor 
     relatives of current or former employees can, in practice, 
     promote religious discrimination if the company's workforce 
     has historically been disproportionately drawn another 
     religious group.
       (7) The development of training programs that will prepare 
     substantial numbers of current minority employees for skilled 
     jobs including the expansion of existing programs and the 
     creation of new programs to train, upgrade, and improve the 
     skills of minority employees.--This does not imply that such 
     programs should not be open to all members of the workforce 
     equally.
       (8) The establishment of procedures to assess, identify, 
     and actively recruit minority employees with potential for 
     further advancement.--This section does not imply that such 
     procedures should not apply to all employees equally.
       (9) The appointment of a senior management staff member to 
     oversee the company's affirmative action efforts and the 
     setting up of timetables to carry out affirmative action 
     principles.--In addition to the above, each signatory to the 
     MacBride Principles is required to report annually to an 
     independent monitoring agency
      on its progress in the implementation of these Principles.

     SEC. 6. WAIVER OF PROVISIONS.

       (a) Waiver of Provisions.--In any case in which the 
     President determines that compliance by a United States 
     person with the provisions of this Act would harm the 
     national security of the United States, the President may 
     waive those provisions with respect to that United States 
     person. The President shall publish in the Federal Register 
     each waiver granted under this section and shall submit to 
     the Congress a justification for granting each such waiver. 
     Any such waiver shall become effective at the end of ninety 
     days after the date on which the justification is submitted 
     to the Congress unless the Congress, within the ninety-day 
     period, adopts a joint resolution disapproving the waiver. In 
     the computation of such ninety-day period, there shall be 
     excluded the days on which either House of Congress is not in 
     session because of an adjournment of more than three days to 
     a day certain or because of an adjournment of the Congress 
     sine die.
       (b) Consideration of Resolutions.--
       (1) Any resolution described in subsection (a) shall be 
     considered in the Senate in accordance with the provisions of 
     section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and 
     Arms Export Control Act of 1976.
       (2) For the purpose of expediting the consideration and 
     adoption of a resolution under subsection (a) in the House of 
     Representatives, a motion to proceed to the consideration of 
     such resolution after it has been reported by the appropriate 
     committee shall be treated as highly privileged in the House 
     of Representatives.

     SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS AND PRESUMPTIONS.

       (a) Definitions.--For the purpose of this Act--
       (1) the term ``United States person'' means any United 
     States resident or national and any domestic concern 
     (including any permanent domestic establishment of any 
     foreign concern);
       (2) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Commerce; 
     and
       (3) the term ``Northern Ireland'' includes the counties of 
     Antrim, Armagh, Londonderry, Down, Tyrone, and Fermanagh.
       (b) Presumption.--A United States person shall be presumed 
     to control a corporation, partnership, or other enterprise in 
     Northern Ireland if--
        [[Page E74]] (1) the United States person beneficially 
     owns or controls (whether directly or indirectly) more than 
     50 percent of the outstanding voting securities of the 
     corporation, partnership, or enterprise;
       (2) the United States person beneficially owns or controls 
     (whether directly or indirectly) 25 percent or more of the 
     voting securities of the corporation, partnership, or 
     enterprise, if no other person owns or controls (whether 
     directly or indirectly) an equal or larger percentage;
       (3) the corporation, partnership, or enterprise is operated 
     by the United States person pursuant to the provisions of an 
     exclusive management contract;
       (4) a majority of the members of the board of directors of 
     the corporation, partnership, or enterprise are also members 
     of the comparable governing body of the United States person;
       (5) the United States person has authority to appoint the 
     majority of the members of the board of directors of the 
     corporation, partnership, or enterprise; or
       (6) the United States person has authority to appoint the 
     chief operating officer of the corporation, partnership, or 
     enterprise.

     SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       This act shall take effect 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act.
     

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