II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1972 

To prohibit discrimination in employment on the basis of an individual’s 

status or history of unemployment. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 29, 2014 

Mr. BLUMENTHAL (for himself, Mr. MARKEY, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. SANDERS, and Mr. MURPHY) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To prohibit discrimination in employment on the basis of 

an individual’s status or history of unemployment. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fair Employment Op5 portunity Act of 2014’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that denial of em8 ployment opportunities to individuals because they are or 


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1 have been unemployed is discriminatory and burdens com2 merce by— 

3 (1) reducing personal consumption and under4 mining economic stability and growth; 

5 (2) squandering human capital essential to the 

6 Nation’s economic vibrancy and growth; 

7 (3) increasing demands for Federal and State 

8 unemployment insurance benefits, reducing trust 

9 fund assets, and leading to higher payroll taxes for 

10 employers, cuts in benefits for jobless workers, or 

11 both; 

12 (4) imposing additional burdens on publicly 

13 funded health and welfare programs; and 

14 (5) depressing income, property, and other tax 

15 revenues that the Federal Government, States, and 

16 localities rely on to support operations and institu17 tions essential to commerce. 

18 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 

19 (1) to prohibit consideration of an individual’s 

20 status as unemployed in considering applicants for, 

21 screening for, or hiring for positions, except where 

22 a requirement related to employment status is a 

23 bona fide occupational qualification reasonably nec24 essary to successful performance in the job; and 


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1 (2) to eliminate the burdens imposed on com2 merce due to the exclusion of such individuals from 

3 employment. 

4 TITLE I—FAIR EMPLOYMENT 

5 FOR NON-FEDERAL EMPLOYEES 

6 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

7 As used in this Act— 

8 (1) the term ‘‘affected individual’’ means any 

9 person who was not considered for employment, or 

10 was not hired by an employer, as an employee, be11 cause of the person’s current employment status 

12 (current as of the date of the decision concerning 

13 consideration or hiring), or any person who was not 

14 considered, screened, or referred for an employment 

15 opportunity, as an employee, by an employment 

16 agency because of the person’s current employment 

17 status (current as of the date of the decision con18 cerning consideration, screening, or referral); 

19 (2) the term ‘‘employee’’ has the meaning given 

20 the term in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards 

21 Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203), but shall not include 

22 an employee covered under subchapter V of chapter 

23 63 of title 5, United States Code; 

24 (3) the term ‘‘employer’’— 


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1 (A) means any person engaged in com2 merce or any industry or activity affecting com3 merce who has 15 or more employees for each 

4 working day in each of 20 or more calendar 

5 weeks in the current or preceding calendar 

6 year; 

7 (B) includes— 

8 (i) any person who acts, directly or in9 directly, in the interest of an employer de10 scribed in subparagraph (A) with respect 

11 to employing individuals to work for the 

12 employer; and 

13 (ii) any successor in interest of an em14 ployer described in subparagraph (A); 

15 (C) includes any public agency, as defined 

16 in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act 

17 of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203), but shall not include 

18 an employing agency covered under subchapter 

19 V of chapter 63 of title 5, United States Code; 

20 and 

21 (D) includes the Government Printing Of22 fice and the Library of Congress; 

23 (4) the term ‘‘employment agency’’ means any 

24 person regularly undertaking with or without com25 pensation to procure employees for an employer or 


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1 to procure for individuals opportunities to work as 

2 employees for an employer and includes an agent of 

3 such a person, and includes any person who main4 tains an Internet website that publishes advertise5 ments or announcements of openings in jobs for em6 ployees; 

7 (5) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

8 of Labor; and 

9 (6) the term ‘‘status as unemployed’’, used with 

10 respect to an individual, means the individual’s 

11 present or past unemployment, regardless of the 

12 length of time such individual was unemployed. 

13 SEC. 102. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

14 (a) EMPLOYERS.—It shall be an unlawful practice for 

15 an employer to— 

16 (1) fail or refuse to consider for employment, or 

17 fail or refuse to hire, an individual as an employee, 

18 because of the individual’s status as unemployed; 

19 (2) publish in print, on the Internet, or in any 

20 other medium, an advertisement or announcement 

21 for an employee for any job that includes— 

22 (A) any provision stating or indicating that 

23 an individual’s status as unemployed disquali24 fies the individual for a job; and 


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1 (B) any provision stating or indicating that 

2 an employer will not consider or hire an indi3 vidual for employment based on that individ4 ual’s status as unemployed; and 

5 (3) direct or request that an employment agen6 cy take an individual’s status as unemployed into ac7 count in considering, screening, or referring appli8 cants for employment as an employee. 

9 (b) EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES.—It shall be an unlaw10 ful practice for an employment agency to— 

11 (1) fail or refuse to consider, screen, or refer an 

12 individual for employment as an employee based on 

13 the individual’s status as unemployed; 

14 (2) limit, segregate, or classify individuals in 

15 any manner that may limit their access to informa16 tion about jobs, or consideration, screening, or refer17 ral for jobs, as employees, because of their status as 

18 unemployed; or 

19 (3) publish, in print or on the Internet or in 

20 any other medium, an advertisement or announce21 ment for any vacancy in a job, as an employee, that 

22 includes— 

23 (A) any provision stating or indicating that 

24 an individual’s status as unemployed disquali25 fies the individual for a job; and 


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1 (B) any provision stating or indicating that 

2 an employer will not consider or hire an indi3 vidual for employment based on that individ4 ual’s status as unemployed. 

5 (c) INTERFERENCE WITH RIGHTS, PROCEEDINGS OR

6 INQUIRIES.—It shall be unlawful for any employer or em7 ployment agency to— 

8 (1) interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise 

9 of or the attempt to exercise, any right provided 

10 under this Act; or 

11 (2) fail or refuse to hire, to discharge, or in any 

12 other manner to discriminate against any individual, 

13 as an employee, because such individual— 

14 (A) opposed any practice made unlawful by 

15 this Act; 

16 (B) has filed any charge, or has instituted 

17 or caused to be instituted any proceeding, 

18 under or related to this Act; 

19 (C) has given, or is about to give, any in20 formation in connection with any inquiry or 

21 proceeding relating to any right provided under 

22 this Act; or 

23 (D) has testified, or is about to testify, in 

24 any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right 

25 provided under this Act. 


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1 (d) BONA FIDE OCCUPATIONAL QUALIFICATION.— 

2 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, consider3 ation by an employer or employment agency of an individ4 ual’s status as unemployed shall not be an unlawful em5 ployment practice under this Act if an individual’s employ6 ment in a similar or related job for a period of time rea7 sonably proximate to the hiring of such individual is a 

8 bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary 

9 to successful performance in the job that is being filled. 

10 SEC. 103. ENFORCEMENT. 

11 (a) CIVIL ACTION BY INDIVIDUAL.— 

12 (1) LIABILITY FOR EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOY13 MENT AGENCIES.—Any employer or employment 

14 agency that violates subsection (a) or (b) of section 

15 4 shall be liable to any affected individual— 

16 (A) for actual damages equal to— 

17 (i) the amount of— 

18 (I) any wages, salary, employ19 ment benefits, or other compensation 

20 denied or lost to such individual by 

21 reason of the violation; or 

22 (II) in a case in which wages, 

23 salary, employment benefits, or other 

24 compensation have not been denied or 

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1 etary losses sustained by the indi2 vidual as a direct result of the viola3 tion or an amount of $1000 per viola4 tion per day, whichever is greater; 

5 (ii) the interest on the amount de6 scribed in clause (i) calculated at the pre7 vailing rate; and 

8 (iii) an additional amount as liq9 uidated damages equal to the sum of the 

10 amount described in clause (i) and the in11 terest described in clause (ii), and any pu12 nitive damages, except that if an employer 

13 or employment agency that has violated 

14 section 4 proves to the satisfaction of the 

15 court that the act or omission that violated 

16 section 4 was in good faith and that the 

17 employer had reasonable grounds for be18 lieving that the act or omission was not a 

19 violation of section 4, such court may, in 

20 its discretion, reduce the amount of the li21 ability to the amount and interest deter22 mined under clauses (i) and (ii), respec23 tively; and 

24 (B) for such equitable relief as may be ap25 propriate, including employment. 


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1 (2) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action to recover 

2 the damages or equitable relief prescribed in para3 graph (1) may be maintained against any employer 

4 or employment agency in any Federal or State court 

5 of competent jurisdiction by any 1 or more persons 

6 for and on behalf of— 

7 (A) the affected individual; or 

8 (B) the affected individual and other indi9 viduals similarly situated. 

10 (3) FEES AND COSTS.—The court in such an 

11 action shall, in addition to any judgment awarded to 

12 the plaintiff, allow a reasonable attorney’s fee, rea13 sonable expert witness fees, and other costs of the 

14 action to be paid by the defendant. 

15 (4) LIMITATIONS.—The right provided by para16 graph (2) to bring an action by or on behalf of any 

17 affected individual shall terminate— 

18 (A) on the filing of a complaint by the Sec19 retary in an action under subsection (d) in 

20 which restraint is sought of any violation of sec21 tion 4; or 

22 (B) on the filing of a complaint by the Sec23 retary in an action under subsection (b) in 

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1 fected individual by an employer or employment 

2 agency liable under paragraph (1), 

3 unless the action described in subparagraph (A) or 

4 (B) is dismissed without prejudice on motion of the 

5 Secretary. 

6 (b) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.— 

7 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.—The Secretary 

8 shall receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve 

9 complaints of violations of section 4 in the same 

10 manner that the Secretary receives, investigates, and 

11 attempts to resolve complaints of violations of sec12 tions 6 and 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

13 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206 and 207). 

14 (2) CIVIL ACTION.—The Secretary may bring 

15 an action in any court of competent jurisdiction— 

16 (A) to enjoin violations of this title and 

17 seek other relief necessary to prevent future vio18 lations; and 

19 (B) to recover— 

20 (i) the damages described in sub21 section (a)(1)(A); 

22 (ii) in the case of a violation of section 

23 4(c), a civil penalty of not less than $250 

24 per violation (in addition to any other re25 lief available under this subparagraph); or 


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1 (iii) such other equitable relief as the 

2 court determines to be appropriate. 

3 (3) SUMS RECOVERED.—Any sums recovered by 

4 the Secretary pursuant to paragraph (2)(B)(i) shall 

5 be held in a special deposit account and shall be 

6 paid, on order of the Secretary, directly to each af7 fected individual. Any such sums recovered pursuant 

8 to paragraph (2)(B)(i) that are not paid to an af9 fected individual because of inability to do so within 

10 a period of 3 years and any sums recovered pursu11 ant to paragraph (2)(B)(ii) shall be deposited into 

12 the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous 

13 receipts. 

14 (c) LIMITATION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para16 graph (2), an action under subsection (a) may be 

17 brought not later than 2 years after the date of the 

18 last event constituting the alleged violation for which 

19 the action is brought, except that the limitation pe20 riod for filing an action by an individual shall be 

21 tolled during the period during which the Secretary 

22 is considering a complaint against any defendant 

23 named in a complaint filed with the Secretary under 

24 subsection (b)(1). 


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1 (2) WILLFUL VIOLATION.—In the case of such 

2 action brought for a willful violation of section 4, 

3 such action may be brought not later than 3 years 

4 after the date of the last event constituting the al5 leged violation for which such action is brought, ex6 cept that the limitation period for filing an action by 

7 an individual shall be tolled during the period during 

8 which the Secretary is considering a complaint, 

9 against the defendant involved, that is filed with the 

10 Secretary under subsection (b)(1). 

11 (3) COMMENCEMENT.—In determining when an 

12 action is commenced by the Secretary under this 

13 section for the purposes of this subsection, it shall 

14 be considered to be commenced on the date when the 

15 Secretary files a complaint in a court of competent 

16 jurisdiction. 

17 (d) ACTION FOR INJUNCTION BY SECRETARY.—The 

18 district courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction, 

19 for cause shown, in an action brought by the Secretary— 

20 (1) to restrain violations of section 4; 

21 (2) to award such other equitable relief as may 

22 be appropriate, including employment; and 

23 (3) to award monetary damages. 


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1 (e) SOLICITOR OF LABOR.—The Solicitor of Labor 

2 may appear for and represent the Secretary on any litiga3 tion brought under this section. 

4 (f) GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE AND LIBRARY

5 OF CONGRESS.—With respect to the Government Printing 

6 Office (acting as an employer or employment agency), and 

7 with respect to the Library of Congress (acting as an em8 ployer or employment agency), the authority of the Sec9 retary of Labor under this title shall be exercised respec10 tively by the Public Printer and the Librarian of Congress. 

11 TITLE II—FAIR EMPLOYMENT 

12 FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES 

13 SEC. 201. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

14 Title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting 

15 after chapter 23 the following: 

16 ‘‘CHAPTER 25—PROHIBITION ON DIS17 CRIMINATION BASED ON EMPLOY18 MENT STATUS 

19 ‘‘§ 2501. Definitions 

20 ‘‘As used in this chapter— 

21 ‘‘(1) the term ‘affected individual’ means any 

22 person who was not considered for employment, or 

23 was not hired by an employing agency, as an em24 ployee, because of the person’s current employment 

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1 cerning consideration or hiring), or any person who 

2 was not considered, screened, or referred for an em3 ployment opportunity, as an employee, by an em4 ployment agency because of the person’s current em5 ployment status (current as of the date of the deci6 sion concerning consideration, screening, or refer7 ral); 

8 ‘‘(2) the term ‘employee’ means an individual 

9 described in section 6381(1)(A); 

10 ‘‘(3) the term ‘employing agency’ means an 

11 agency covered under subchapter V of chapter 63; 

12 ‘‘(4) the term ‘employment agency’ means any 

13 person regularly undertaking with or without com14 pensation to procure employees for an employing 

15 agency or to procure for individuals opportunities to 

16 work as employees for an employing agency and in17 cludes an agent of such a person, and includes any 

18 person who maintains an Internet website that pub19 lishes advertisements or announcements of openings 

20 in jobs for employees; 

21 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary 

22 of Labor; and 

23 ‘‘(6) the term ‘status as unemployed’, used with 

24 respect to an individual, means the individual’s 


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1 present or past unemployment, regardless of the 

2 length of time such individual was unemployed. 

3 ‘‘§ 2502. Prohibited acts 

4 ‘‘(a) It shall be an unlawful practice for an employing 

5 agency to— 

6 ‘‘(1) fail or refuse to consider for employment, 

7 or fail or refuse to hire, an individual as an em8 ployee, because of the individual’s status as unem9 ployed; 

10 ‘‘(2) publish in print, on the Internet, or in any 

11 other medium, an advertisement or announcement 

12 for an employee for any job that includes— 

13 ‘‘(A) any provision stating or indicating 

14 that an individual’s status as unemployed dis15 qualifies the individual for a job; and 

16 ‘‘(B) any provision stating or indicating 

17 that an employing agency will not consider or 

18 hire an individual for employment based on that 

19 individual’s status as unemployed; and 

20 ‘‘(3) direct or request that an employment 

21 agency take an individual’s status as unemployed 

22 into account in considering, screening, or referring 

23 applicants for employment as an employee. 

24 ‘‘(b) It shall be an unlawful practice for an employ25 ment agency to— 


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1 ‘‘(1) fail or refuse to consider, screen, or refer 

2 an individual for employment as an employee based 

3 on the individual’s status as unemployed; 

4 ‘‘(2) limit, segregate, or classify individuals in 

5 any manner that may limit their access to informa6 tion about jobs, or consideration, screening, or refer7 ral for jobs, as employees, because of their status as 

8 unemployed; or 

9 ‘‘(3) publish, in print or on the Internet or in 

10 any other medium, an advertisement or announce11 ment for any vacancy in a job, as an employee, that 

12 includes— 

13 ‘‘(A) any provision stating or indicating 

14 that an individual’s status as unemployed dis15 qualifies the individual for a job; and 

16 ‘‘(B) any provision stating or indicating 

17 that an employing agency will not consider or 

18 hire an individual for employment based on that 

19 individual’s status as unemployed. 

20 ‘‘(c) It shall be unlawful for any employing agency 

21 or employment agency to— 

22 ‘‘(1) interfere with, restrain, or deny the exer23 cise of or the attempt to exercise, any right provided 

24 under this chapter; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) fail or refuse to hire, to discharge, or in 

2 any other manner to discriminate against any indi3 vidual, as an employee, because such individual— 

4 ‘‘(A) opposed any practice made unlawful 

5 by this chapter; 

6 ‘‘(B) has filed any charge, or has insti7 tuted or caused to be instituted any proceeding, 

8 under or related to this chapter; 

9 ‘‘(C) has given, or is about to give, any in10 formation in connection with any inquiry or 

11 proceeding relating to any right provided under 

12 this chapter; or 

13 ‘‘(D) has testified, or is about to testify, in 

14 any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right 

15 provided under this chapter. 

16 ‘‘(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

17 chapter, consideration by an employing agency or employ18 ment agency of an individual’s status as unemployed shall 

19 not be an unlawful employment practice under this chap20 ter if an individual’s employment in a similar or related 

21 job for a period of time reasonably proximate to the hiring 

22 of such individual is a bona fide occupational qualification 

23 reasonably necessary to successful performance in the job 

24 that is being filled. 


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1 ‘‘§ 2503. Enforcement 

2 ‘‘The Office of Personnel Management shall prescribe 

3 regulations necessary for the administration of this chap4 ter. The regulations prescribed under this chapter shall, 

5 to the extent appropriate, be consistent with the regula6 tions prescribed by the Secretary of Labor to carry out 

7 title I of the Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2014.’’. 

Æ 


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