[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 50 (Thursday, April 18, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S3624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              THE TEAM ACT

  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I recently became a co-sponsor of S. 295, 
the Teamwork for Employers and Management Act, a bill that is scheduled 
for markup today in the Labor Committee and which the Small Business 
Committee, on which I sit, will consider tomorrow. This bill is very 
important to small businesses. It is important to all business but, 
with 98 percent of Montana's businesses considered small, those are the 
folks I'm hearing from.
  Many of the businesses that have contacted me were in shock. They had 
no idea that the committees they had formed with their employees were 
in violation of the law. As far as they were concerned, they were just 
good business practice. The committees kept the employees involved in 
operations and improved customer satisfaction.
  But according to the National Labor Relations Act, employee 
involvement is illegal. The intent of the law, established in the 
1930's, was to prevent employers from dominating a labor organization. 
And labor organization is defined as a group of employees that 
discusses terms or conditions of employment with the employer. That may 
be well and good as far as collective bargaining is concerned--at the 
time, the NLRA wanted to stop employers from establishing these company 
unions to keep independent unions out--but the law is being interpreted 
to mean that discussions of safety, productivity, and quality are 
considered conditions of employment. That's causing more than a little 
heart burn.
  Let me give you an example. There is a Montana company I have heard 
from, and I will not name them since, understandably, many small 
businesses are afraid of having their practices brought to the 
attention of the NLRB. But this company, with diversified interests, 
has formed a committee on safety--safety not only of employees who work 
with a variety of equipment but of the thousands of visitors who use 
their facilities every day. This committee gives the employees 
ownership of their surroundings and results in a safer workplace for 
everyone.

  This same company also has a committee on customer satisfaction. The 
employees survey the facilities periodically and decide on changes in 
decorations, improvements in the surroundings, how to make the area 
more customer friendly--basically how to draw business in and keep it. 
Once again, this is not only a good business practice, it is a way to 
keep the employees energized about their work conditions. How can this 
possibly be against the law? That is not only the question they are 
asking, it is one we should all ask.
  Yet, if the National Labor Relations Board learned about these 
employee involvement teams, according to the law, they could penalize 
the employer. And in a number of cases, they already have. That does 
not even make sense.
  Now, I know that the Government is famous for not making sense--and 
that is what our regulatory reform efforts are about--but here is one 
specific place we can make a difference. By passing this bill, the 
Teamwork for Employees and Management Act, without any taxpayers 
dollars, without any new volumes of paperwork, we can let business get 
back to business without fear of the heavy hand of Government coming 
down on them.
  By simply amending the National Labor Relations Act, we can allow 
teamwork to continue, and allow businesses to form teams to safeguard 
working conditions, improvement productivity and efficiency, and boost 
the quality of their products. This does not just benefit the employer 
and the employee, it helps our economy.
  Mr. President, this provision of the law may have served its purposes 
60 years ago, but it is not necessary today. Small businesses need all 
the help they can get to survive in today's competitive market and 
being flexible is vital to that success. Small business owners need the 
input, the advice, the cooperation, and the labor of their employees. 
To prohibit that involvement is to squash innovation and prosperity, 
the very ideals that make up the American Dream.
  I strongly support this legislation, Mr. President. I hope we can 
bring this to the floor quickly and relieve the stress on our small 
businesses around the Nation who have learned of their allegedly 
``illegal'' business practices. Let us get the government off their 
backs once again, and let business do what they do best--create jobs 
and produce high quality goods and services for the world to enjoy.

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