[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 48 (Thursday, March 12, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1743-S1744]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. Whitehouse, and Mr. Sanders):
  S. 3496. A bill to provide for Federal financing of short-time 
compensation programs during public health emergencies; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, today I am joined by several of my 
colleagues in introducing the Layoff Prevention Extension Act and the 
Preventing Layoffs During a Public Health Emergency Act. Both bills 
would renew Federal support for State short-time compensation--or work 
sharing--programs and provide assistance for States to adopt and 
improve existing programs in law. The latter bill would specifically 
activate financing for work sharing programs when there is a public 
health emergency.
  The coronavirus has officially reached a pandemic level, with an 
increasing impact on individual lives, communities, and businesses 
across the United States. Last week, I was pleased that the Senate 
voted on an overwhelming bipartisan basis to approve nearly $8 billion 
in supplemental funding for public health agencies to respond to this 
outbreak, but that was only the down payment.
  While Congress has taken initial steps to address coronavirus as a 
public health crisis and stop the spread of COVID-19, it is also 
important to support the workers, students, families, and businesses 
that are already being impacted as this outbreak ripples

[[Page S1744]]

across the economy. In response to a reduced workforce due to workers 
that are ill, quarantined, or have new caregiving duties, companies 
that are losing business may need to lay off workers--even those that 
are healthy, if they are unable to keep their doors open. We need to 
extend emergency UI benefits, but just as importantly, we should 
incentivize employers to not lay off workers for what we hope will be a 
temporary public health emergency.
  That is where work sharing can play a critical role, as it 
encourages, through the UI system, employers and employees to 
voluntarily reduce hours instead of laying people off. The concept of 
work sharing is simple--it provides an alternative to help businesses 
that are experiencing a temporary slowdown the chance to retain 
employees on a less than full-time basis. By giving struggling 
companies the flexibility to reduce hours instead of their workforce, 
work sharing programs prevent layoffs and help employers save money on 
rehiring costs. All the while, workers who otherwise would be in danger 
of losing their jobs completely--would keep their jobs instead, with 
the UI system making up for lost wages.
  According to the Department of Labor, work sharing saved 
approximately 570,000 jobs in the wake of the Great Recession (2008-
2015). As part of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act, 
Congress enacted my Layoff Prevention Act of 2012, which provided 
temporary Federal financing for 100 percent of work sharing benefits 
paid to workers. States also received -1/grants for implementation, 
improved administration, and program enrollment efforts. This 
assistance helped save over 130,000 jobs from 2012 to its sunset in 
2015. Multiple studies have found that communities that adopted more 
robust work-sharing programs weathered the recession with lower 
unemployment rates. But even more jobs could have been saved if these 
programs had been in place before business slowed down.
  The legislation I am introducing today would address the current 
public health emergency and help soften the blow of future slowdowns. 
The Preventing Layoffs During a Public Health Emergency Act would 
provide financing to States with and without formal work sharing laws 
during the period of a public health emergency, and up to one year 
after the termination of the emergency. The Layoff Prevention Act would 
provide a more permanent solution to give States an incentive to expand 
their work sharing programs to prevent future layoffs and blunt 
economic downturns.
  I urge my colleagues to join me and Senators Whitehouse and Sanders 
in supporting passage of both bills to keep American workers on the 
job, save taxpayers money, and provide employers with a practical, 
positive, and cost-effective alternative to layoffs.

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