[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 168 (Tuesday, November 10, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11353-S11354]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             AIRLINE FLIGHT CREW TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS ACT

  Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the HELP 
Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. 1422 and the 
Senate proceed to its consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1422) to amend the Family and Medical Leave Act 
     of 1993 to clarify the eligibility requirements with respect 
     to airline flight crews.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. ENZI. Madam President, I would like to engage my friend, the 
Senator from Washington and the chairman of the Subcommittee on 
Employment and Workplace Safety, with whom I have been pleased to work 
on many initiatives on behalf of America's workforce, in a conversation 
about the bill she has just introduced. I would like to take this 
opportunity to clarify the treatment of workers contained in the Flight 
Crew Technical Corrections Act before us today that pertains to flight 
crews. Is it the Senator's understanding that her legislation resolves 
a problem unique to flight crews--meaning flight attendants and 
pilots--and that no other group of workers is addressed under this 
bill?
  Mrs. MURRAY. Yes, the Senator is correct. This bill is narrowly 
constructed to address the unique situation faced by flight attendants 
and pilots in the calculation of the hours they need to qualify for 
leave under the Family Medical Leave Act, FMLA. I understand that the 
FMLA eligibility calculation does not include paid vacation, sick, 
medical or personal leave unless otherwise agreed to in a collective 
bargaining agreements or the employers manual. This bill reflects the 
intent of the FMLA's original sponsors to provide an alternative way to 
include flight crews that addresses the airline industry's unique time-
keeping methods. I am proud that the Flight Crew Technical Corrections 
Act fixes a technical problem that has left many full-time flight crew 
members ineligible for family medical leave for many years due to the 
unique way their work hours are calculated.
  Mr. ENZI. In other words, is it the Senator's understanding that the 
bill should not be construed to apply to other occupational groups that 
operate under reserve systems such as health care, railway, and 
emergency services to seek similar treatment?
  Mrs. MURRAY. Correct, this bill narrowly deals with flight crews 
only. The bill is a technical correction for language that was intended 
to be in the original Family Medical Leave Act, but for some reason or 
another was left out. Flight crews were specifically mentioned in the 
FMLA's legislative history. Thus, I believe that the correction is 
clearly appropriate for flight crews. If other groups were to attempt 
an adjustment in their FMLA eligibility requirements, I suggest that 
their situation and the ramifications of such an adjustment would need 
to be examined on a case by case basis.
  Mr. ENZI. The Senator mentioned the FMLA's legislative history. Is it 
the Senator's further understanding that this is the only group of 
employees which was intended to be included with an alternative 
eligibility standard?
  Mrs. MURRAY. The Senator is correct. The original authors stated that 
they did not intend to exclude flight crews in unique circumstances 
from the bill's protection simply because of the airline industry's 
``unusual time keeping methods.'' They believed that these workers--
flight attendants and pilots--were entitled to family and medical leave 
under the law based upon the situation they specifically faced.
  This legislation received overwhelming bipartisan support in the 
House of Representatives. I am pleased to present it in the Senate with 
bipartisan support. This language was drafted through a process that 
included representatives from large and small airline carriers and 
carrier associations, and organized labor. I need to recognize the work 
that Senator Clinton did on this bill when she introduced its precursor 
in the 110th Congress.
  Mr. ENZI. I would like to thank the Senator from Washington and the 
former Senator from New York for the deliberative process they both 
utilized while drafting this legislation. As the Senator knows, I am a 
frequent advocate for following Senate committee process so as to 
create the opportunity for all affected stakeholders to be included in 
the process. In this case, the Senator has done an admirable job of 
vetting the legislation with most stakeholders and produced a better 
product.
  Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that a Murray 
amendment, which is at the desk, be agreed to; the bill, as amended, be 
read a third time and passed; the motions to reconsider be laid upon 
the table, with no intervening action or debate; and any statements 
relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 2780) was agreed to, as follows:

    (Purpose: To clarify a requirement concerning hours of service)

       On page 2, line 22, insert after ``counting'' the following 
     ``personal commute time or''.

  The bill (S. 1422), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

                                S. 1422

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Airline Flight Crew 
     Technical Corrections Act''.

     SEC. 2. LEAVE REQUIREMENT FOR AIRLINE FLIGHT CREWS.

       (a) Inclusion of Airline Flight Crews.--Section 101(2) of 
     the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(2)) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) Airline flight crews.--
       ``(i) Determination.--For purposes of determining whether 
     an employee who is a flight attendant or flight crewmember 
     (as such terms are defined in regulations of the Federal 
     Aviation Administration) meets the hours of service 
     requirement specified in subparagraph (A)(ii), the employee 
     will be considered to meet the requirement if--

       ``(I) the employee has worked or been paid for not less 
     than 60 percent of the applicable total monthly guarantee, or 
     the equivalent, for the previous 12-month period, for or by

[[Page S11354]]

     the employer with respect to whom leave is requested under 
     section 102; and
       ``(II) the employee has worked or been paid for not less 
     than 504 hours (not counting personal commute time or time 
     spent on vacation leave or medical or sick leave) during the 
     previous 12-month period, for or by that employer.

       ``(ii) File.--Each employer of an employee described in 
     clause (i) shall maintain on file with the Secretary (in 
     accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may 
     prescribe) containing information specifying the applicable 
     monthly guarantee with respect to each category of employee 
     to which such guarantee applies.
       ``(iii) Definition.--In this subparagraph, the term 
     `applicable monthly guarantee' means--

       ``(I) for an employee described in clause (i) other than an 
     employee on reserve status, the minimum number of hours for 
     which an employer has agreed to schedule such employee for 
     any given month; and
       ``(II) for an employee described in clause (i) who is on 
     reserve status, the number of hours for which an employer has 
     agreed to pay such employee on reserve status for any given 
     month,

     as established in the applicable collective bargaining 
     agreement or, if none exists, in the employer's policies.''.
       (b) Calculation of Leave for Airline Flight Crews.--Section 
     102(a) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 
     2612(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) Calculation of leave for airline flight crews.--The 
     Secretary may provide, by regulation, a method for 
     calculating the leave described in paragraph (1) with respect 
     to employees described in section 101(2)(D).''.

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