[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 51 (Friday, April 25, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3730-S3731]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. WARNER (for himself, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Enzi, 
        Mr. Helms, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Roth, and Mr. Sessions):
  S. 656. A bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to 
exclude from the definition of employee firefighters and rescue squad 
workers who perform volunteer services and to prevent employers from 
requiring employees who are firefighters or rescue squad workers to 
perform volunteer services, and to allow an employer not to pay 
overtime compensation to a firefighter or rescue squad worker who 
performs volunteer services for the employer, and for other purposes; 
to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources.


         the volunteer firefighter and rescue squad worker act

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise today to once again introduce the 
Volunteer Firefighter and Rescue Squad Worker Act.
  The purposes of this legislation, which was S. 324 in the 104th 
Congress, are to preserve the spirit of volunteerism in our communities 
and to assist our volunteer firefighters and rescue squad workers in 
their mission to provide vital life-saving and property protection 
services in their communities.
  Under current law, it is illegal for a firefighter or rescue squad 
worker to work on a volunteer basis for the same community which 
employs him or her during the workweek. My bill would amend the Fair 
Labor Standards Act of 1938 to reflect the realities of the work force 
of the 1990's by excluding from the definition of ``employee'' 
firefighters and rescue squad workers who are performing volunteer 
services, thus removing the need to pay these volunteers overtime pay 
for those hours volunteered.
  The need for this legislation stems from a 1993 U.S. Department of 
Labor ruling that a career firefighter cannot serve as a volunteer 
firefighter within the same county in which he or she is employed. My 
legislation would allow professional firefighters and rescue squad 
workers to volunteer their services during off-duty hours and to waive 
overtime pay. The bill specifically prohibits employers from requiring 
firefighters and rescue squad workers to volunteer when they would 
otherwise be entitled to receive overtime compensation, and it requires 
that any agreement by such employees to waive their right to overtime 
compensation be put in writing. I have also added new anticoercion 
language to the bill to specifically define behavior that would be 
considered coercive.
  Historically, volunteer fire and rescue services have played an 
important role in our communities. Millions of people, at some point in 
their lives, have depended upon the services of such volunteers to 
protect life and property. In many cases, it is the professional 
firefighters and rescue workers who volunteered their expertise and 
training to their communities as a way of giving something back to 
their friends and neighbors. The current law, in comparison, does not 
even allow a firefighter or rescue worker to respond to an emergency 
without FLSA regulation.
  Moreover, many municipalities and counties rely upon volunteer 
services because they lack the funds to operate a full-time 
professional and rescue service. I am concerned that until this bill is 
passed, many of our citizens will lack the level of protection that 
would voluntarily be provided by these professionals. This problem is 
especially

[[Page S3731]]

acute for rural areas where fire and rescue units are less common and 
more remote.
  Mr. President, I thank my colleagues, Senators Cochran, Enzi, Helms, 
Hutchinson, Roth, Sessions, and Thomas, who are cosponsors of this 
legislation. I hope my other colleagues will support this important 
legislation to return an important resource to localities to protect 
the property, and indeed the very lives, of Americans across our great 
nation.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 656

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 2. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Volunteer Firefighter and 
     Rescue Squad Worker Act''.

     SEC. 2. FIREFIGHTER AND RESCUE SQUAD SERVICES.

       Section 3(e)(4) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 
     U.S.C. 203(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following 
     new subparagraph:
       ``(C) The term `employee' does not include a firefighter or 
     a member of a rescue squad during the period in which the 
     firefighter or rescue squad member volunteers to perform 
     firefighting or rescue squad services at a location where the 
     firefighter or member is not then or regularly employed.''.

     SEC. 3. WAIVER OF OVERTIME COMPENSATION.

       The employer of a firefighter or member of a rescue squad 
     shall not be required to pay the firefighter or member 
     overtime compensation under section 7 of the Fair Labor 
     Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207) for a period during 
     which the firefighter or member--
       (1) volunteered to perform services for the employer; and
       (2) signed a legally binding waiver of such compensation.

     SEC. 4. LIMITATIONS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF VOLUNTEER SERVICES.

       (a) Overtime Compensation Requirement.--Section 7 of the 
     Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207) is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:
       ``(r) No employer may require (directly or indirectly) an 
     employee who is a firefighter or member of a rescue squad to 
     volunteer the employee's firefighting or rescue squad 
     services during any period in which the employee would be 
     entitled to receive compensation for overtime employment 
     under subsection (a).''.
       (b) Prohibition Against Coercion.--
       (1) In general.--An employer shall not directly or 
     indirectly intimidate, threaten, or coerce, or attempt to 
     intimidate, threaten, or coerce, an employee who is a 
     firefighter or member of a rescue squad for the purpose of 
     requiring the employee to volunteer the employee's 
     firefighting or rescue squad services.
       (2) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``intimidate, 
     threaten, or coerce'' includes promising to confer or 
     conferring any benefit (such as appointment, promotion, or 
     compensation) or effecting or threatening to effect any 
     reprisal (such as deprivation of appointment, promotion, or 
     compensation).
                                 ______