House Labor Leaders Introduce Bill to Protect Workers and Level the Playing Field

House Labor Leaders Introduce Bill to Protect Workers and Level the Playing Field

WASHINGTON - Today, House labor leaders will introduce the Labor Enforcement to Securely (LET'S) Protect Workers Act. The LET'S Protect Workers Act is a transformative bill that will protect America's workers and crack down on dishonest employers and corporations by raising penalties for violations of workers' rights and protections.

The bill introduction is accompanied by a damning report entitled, "A Slap on the Wrist: How it Pays for Dishonest Employers to Take Advantage of Workers" which illustrates how current civil monetary penalties for labor violations fall short, allowing dishonest employers to exploit workers. And it underscores the lack of accountability for serious infractions, such as illegal child labor, worker fatalities, wage theft, union-busting, and discriminatory health coverage practices, emboldens companies to keep breaking the law.

"Every American should be fairly compensated and be able to return home safely at the end of the day," said Ranking Member Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), House Committee on Education and Workforce. "Unfortunately, shortcomings in our labor laws enable unethical employers to exploit workers, endanger children, and suppress the right to organize-with little accountability. That's why I'm proud to reintroduce the LET'S Protect Workers Act, which will hold bad actors accountable and strengthen penalties for labor law violations. This bill will help level the playing field and, once again, restore the balance of power between workers and their employers."

"Far too often, bad employers break our labor laws by violating safety standards or retaliating against workers for union organizing, and yet they get off with merely a slap on the wrist," said Congressional Labor Caucus Co-Chairs Reps. Donald Norcross, Mark Pocan, Debbie Dingell, and Steven Horsford. "Today, we're introducing legislation that would finally establish meaningful penalties to protect workers and hold bad actors accountable. Every day, working people bravely organize for fairer workplaces, and lawmakers need to have their backs. We're calling on every one of our colleagues to join us in supporting this legislation and fighting for workers."

Responsibly strengthening civil monetary penalties will save workers' lives, prevent disabling injury, protect the welfare of children, safeguard the most vulnerable workers, and undergird the right to organize by raising the cost of noncompliance and deterring violations. The LET'S Protect Workers Act will:

• Increase civil monetary penalties for violations of child labor, minimum wage and overtime, worker health and safety, and farmworker protection standards.
• Improve mine safety and reliable funding of black lung benefits through new and increased civil monetary penalties and the option to shut down scofflaw operators.
• Set new penalties for retaliation against workers who exercise their family and medical leave rights.
• Strengthen enforcement of mental health parity requirements for employer-sponsored health plans.
• Close a loophole that allows employers to escape penalties for failing to keep records of workplace injuries if OSHA does not detect the violation within six months.
• Create new penalties for violations of the National Labor Relations Act, consistent with the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.

The LET'S Protect Workers Act is co-sponsored by 70 Representatives including Alma S. Adams (NC-12), Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Nikki Budzinski (IL-13), André Carson (IN-07), Troy A. Carter (LA-02), Greg Casar (TX-25), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Judy Chu (CA-28), Gilbert Ray Cisneros, Jr. (CA-31), Emanuel Cleaver (MO-05), Danny K. Davis (IL-07), Christopher R. Deluzio (PA-17), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Maxine Dexter (OR-03), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Sarah Elfreth (MD-03), Dwight Evans (PA-03), Valerie P. Foushee (NC-04), Lois Frankel (FL-22), John Garamendi (CA-08), Jesús G. "Chuy" García (IL-04), Daniel S. Goldman (NY-10), Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-AL), Steven Horsford (NV-04), Chrissy Houlahan (PA-06), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (GA-04), Robin L. Kelly (IL-02), Timothy M. Kennedy (NY-26), Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), Greg Landsman (OH-01), Summer L. Lee (PA-12), Ted Lieu (CA-36), Stephen F. Lynch (MA-08), Seth Magaziner (RI-02), John W. Mannion (NY-22), Doris O. Matsui (CA-07), Sarah McBride (DE-AL), Jennifer L. McClellan (VA-04), Morgan McGarvey (KY-03), James P. McGovern (MA-02), LaMonica McIver (NJ-10), Robert Menendez (NJ-08), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Frank J. Mrvan (IN-01), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03), Emily Randall (WA-06), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Janice D. Schakowsky (IL-09), Lateefah Simon (CA-12), Melanie A. Stansbury (NM-01), Haley M. Stevens (MI-11), Thomas R. Suozzi (NY-03), Emilia Strong Sykes (OH-13), Mark Takano (CA-39), Dina Titus (NV-01), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Lauren Underwood (IL-14), Maxine Waters (CA-43), Frederica S. Wilson (FL-24), Val T. Hoyle (OR-04), Teresa Leger Fernandez (NM-03), Glenn Ivey (MD-04), and Angie Craig (MN-02).

The LET'S Protect Workers Act is endorsed by AFL-CIO, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Child Labor Coalition, Communications Workers of America (CWA), Economic Policy Institute (EPI), Family Values @ Work, International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), National Consumers League, National Employment Law Project (NELP), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), UNITE HERE, United Auto Workers (UAW), United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and United Steelworkers (USW).

To read the full text of the LET'S Protect Workers Act, click here.

To read the fact sheet of the LET'S Protect Workers Act, click here.

To read the section-by-section of the LET'S Protect Workers Act, click here.

To read the report entitled, "A Slap on the Wrist: How it Pays for Dishonest Employers to Take Advantage of Workers," click here.

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