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

07.26.24

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

WASHINGTON - Today, House labor leaders introduced the Labor Enforcement to Securely (LET'S) Protect Workers Act (H.R. 9137). The LET'S Protect Workers Act isa transformative legislative bill aimed at bolstering protections for America's workers and ensuring accountability for employers who flout labor and employment laws.

In April, Ranking Member Scott released a damning report entitled, "A Slap on the Wrist: How It Pays for Unscrupulous Employers to Take Advantage of Workers"" which illustrated how current civil monetary penalties for labor violations fall short, allowing unscrupulous employers to exploit workers. It underscores that lack of accountability for serious infractions, such as illegal child labor, worker fatalities, wage theft, and discriminatory practices, often amount to mere fractions of the economic gain from these violations.

"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 the 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 introduce 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."

"The lack of meaningful enforcement makes it all too easy for bad faith actors to get away with illegally violating workers' rights-from firing workers for organizing a union, to allowing children to work overnight shifts, or jeopardizing workers' safety by ignoring workplace regulations," said Labor Caucus Co-Chairs Norcross, Dingell, Horsford, and Pocan. "We're proud to join Ranking Member Scott in introducing this bill to crack down on unscrupulous employers and to ensure that workers receive the protections they deserve."

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 WorkersAct is co-sponsored by Representatives Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03), Alma S. Adams (NC-12), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Greg Casar (TX-25), Debbie Dingell (MI-12), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At-Large), Steven Horsford (NV-04), Morgan McGarvey (KY-03), Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), and Susan Wild (PA-07).

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

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

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

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