[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 49 (Thursday, April 5, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E554-E555]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        HELP MORE FULL-TIME WORKERS BRING HOME A DECENT PAYCHECK

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. LUIS V. GUTIERREZ

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, April 4, 2001

  Mr. GUTIERREZ. Mr. Speaker, on March 7 I introduced the ``Federal 
Living Wage Responsibility Act of 2001,'' legislation to mandate a 
livable wage for employees under Federal contracts and subcontracts. 
Seventy representatives currently cosponsor this important legislation.
  Nearly a third of the members of the U.S. labor force work full-time, 
year-round and still do not earn enough to sustain a family of four at 
no less than the poverty threshold of $17,650 per year for a family of 
four. Employees who work hard at full-time jobs should be paid a wage 
that assures they will not live in poverty.
  To address this problem, this Act requires that:
  Employees of Federal contracts or subcontracts of more than $10,000 
be paid the greater of $8.49 per hour or the hourly wage necessary to 
reach the poverty level.
  Individuals hired by the United States government also receive a 
living wage, helping thousands of more workers to stay above the 
poverty level.
  Employees of Federal contracts or subcontracts and individuals hired 
by the United States government receive benefits such as medical or 
hospital care, vacation and holiday pay, disability and sickness 
insurance, life insurance and pensions.
  Although Congress passed laws such as the Davis Bacon Act and the 
Service Contract Act to help ensure that employees of Federal 
contractors earn a decent wage, thousands of federal workers and 
federally contracted workers still do not earn enough to support 
themselves or their families.
  This legislation will allow hard-working Americans to earn quality 
wages and to increase their savings for such essential needs as their 
retirement and their children's education. We believe the Federal 
government must take responsible, workable steps to reward working 
Americans and to help keep them out of poverty. This bill represents a 
practical step toward that goal.
  Mr. Speaker, I submit the full text of this meaningful legislation 
for the Record and I urge my colleagues to support this important 
legislation.

                                H.R. 917

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

[[Page E555]]

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Living Wage 
     Responsibility Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds the following:
       (1) According to data from fiscal year 1999, approximately 
     162,000 Federal contract workers did not earn a wage 
     sufficient to lift a family of four out of poverty. Just 
     under 60 percent of these poorly paid workers work for large 
     firms and 62 percent work on Department of Defense contracts. 
     These workers represent 11 percent of the total 1.4 million 
     Federal contract workers in the United States.
       (2) As of September 2000, 14,356 workers employed by the 
     Federal Government earned less than the poverty level for a 
     family of four.
       (3) A majority of workers earning less than a living wage 
     are adult females working full-time. A disproportionate 
     number of workers earning less than a living wage are 
     minorities.
       (4) The Federal Government provides billions of dollars to 
     businesses each year, through spending programs, grants and 
     Government-favored financing.
       (5) In fiscal year 1999, the Federal Government awarded 
     contracts worth over $208 billion.
       (6) Congress must ensure that Federal dollars are used 
     responsibly to improve the economic security and well-being 
     of Americans across the country.

     SEC. 3. POVERTY-LEVEL WAGE.

       (a) General Rule.--Notwithstanding any other law that does 
     not specifically exempt itself from this Act and except as 
     provided in subsection (b), the Federal Government and any 
     employer under a Federal contract for an amount exceeding 
     $10,000 (or a subcontract under such a contract) shall pay to 
     each of their respective workers--
       (1) an hourly wage (or salary equivalent) sufficient for a 
     worker to earn, while working 40 hours a week on a full-time 
     basis, the amount of the Federal poverty level for a family 
     of four (as published in the Federal Register by the 
     Department of Health and Human Services under the authority 
     of section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act 
     (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)); and
       (2) an additional amount, determined by the Secretary based 
     on the locality in which a worker resides, sufficient to 
     cover the costs to such worker to obtain any fringe benefits 
     not provided by the worker's employer.
       (b) Exemptions.--Subsection (a) does not apply to the 
     following:
       (1) A small-business concern (as that term is used in 
     section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)).
       (2) A nonprofit organization exempt from Federal income tax 
     under section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 
     U.S.C. 501(c), if the ratio of the total wages of the chief 
     executive officer of such organization to the wages of the 
     full-time equivalent of the lowest paid worker is not greater 
     than 25 to 1.
       (c) Retaliation prohibited.--It shall be unlawful for any 
     employer subject to subsection (a) to terminate or suspend 
     the employment of a worker on the basis of such worker's 
     allegation of a violation of subsection (a).
       (d) Contract Requirement.--Any contract subject to 
     subsection (a) shall contain a provision requiring the 
     Federal contractor to ensure that any worker hired under such 
     contract (or a subcontract thereof) shall be paid in 
     accordance with subsection (a).

     SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT BY SECRETARY.

       (a) In General.--If the Secretary determines (in a written 
     finding setting forth a detailed explanation of such 
     determination), after notice and an opportunity for a hearing 
     on the record, that a Federal contractor (or any 
     subcontractor thereof) subject to section 3 has engaged in a 
     pattern or practice of violations of section 3, the following 
     shall apply to such Federal contractor:
       (1) Contract cancellation.--After final adjudication of a 
     pattern or practice of violations, the United States may 
     cancel any contract (or the remainder thereof) with the 
     Federal contractor that is a part of the pattern or practice 
     of violations.
       (2) Restitution.--A Federal contractor whose contract is 
     cancelled under paragraph (1) shall be liable to the United 
     States in an amount equal to the costs to the Government in 
     obtaining a replacement contractor to cover the remainder of 
     any contract cancelled under paragraph (1).
       (3) Contract ineligibility.--After final adjudication of a 
     pattern or practice of violations, the Federal contractor 
     shall be ineligible to enter into, extend, or renew a 
     contract with the United States for a period of five years 
     after the date of such adjudication.
       (4) Publication.--Not later than 90 days after final 
     adjudication of a pattern or practice of violations, the 
     Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a notice 
     describing the ineligibility of the Federal contractor under 
     paragraph (3).
       (b) Safe Harbor.--Subsection (a) shall not apply if--
       (1) the Federal contractor has entered into a consent 
     agreement with the Secretary with regard to a pattern or 
     practice of violations of section 3 and has paid to any 
     aggrieved workers all wages due them, to the satisfaction of 
     the Secretary; or
       (2) the Secretary determines, after consultation with the 
     affected Government entity, that cancellation or debarment 
     under subsection (a) would not be in the best interests of 
     the Nation or of such Government entity.
       (c) Judicial Review.--Any Federal contractor aggrieved by 
     an adverse determination of the Secretary under subsection 
     (a) may seek review of such determination in an appropriate 
     court.

     SEC. 5. EMERGENCIES.

       The President may suspend the provisions of this Act in 
     times of emergency.

     SEC. 6. PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

       (a) Action.--A worker aggrieved by a violation of section 3 
     may, in a civil action, recover appropriate relief. A civil 
     action under this section shall be filed not later than 3 
     years after the commission of such violation. A civil action 
     may not be brought under this section if an employer subject 
     to section 3 has paid or reinstated the worker as a result of 
     an administrative action under section 4.
       (b Relief.--In this section, the term ``appropriate 
     relief'' means--
       (1) injunction of a violation of section 3;
       (2) actual damages or, if the court finds that the employer 
     willfully violated section 3, three times actual damages;
       (3) reasonable attorney fees and the costs of the action; 
     and
       (4) any other relief the court deems appropriate in the 
     circumstances of the case.

     SEC. 7. RULEMAKING.

       The Secretary shall make rules to carry out this Act, which 
     shall take effect not later than 120 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) The term ``employer'' means a person who has economic 
     power to set a worker's terms and conditions of employment, 
     regardless of the formality of an employment relationship.
       (2) The term ``fringe benefits'' means--
       (A) medical or hospital care or contributions to a health 
     insurance plan;
       (B) contributions to a retirement plan;
       (C) life insurance;
       (D) disability insurance; and
       (E) vacation and holiday pay.
       (3) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Labor.

       

                          ____________________