I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4548 

To amend the National Labor Relations Act to strengthen protections for 

employees to exercise their rights to organize and collectively bargain 

for improved wages, hours, or other terms and conditions of employment, 

to sanction violations of such rights and assure meaningful remedies, 

to establish a process by which employers and employees conclude initial 

collective bargaining agreements, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 5, 2017 

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia (for himself, Mr. SABLAN, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. 

DESAULNIER, Mr. NORCROSS, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. 

NAPOLITANO, Mr. POCAN, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. RYAN of 

Ohio, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. CUMMINGS, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. 

BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. SERRANO, 

Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. SA ́NCHEZ, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. 

RASKIN, Ms. HANABUSA, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. GUTIE ́RREZ, Ms. NORTON, 

Mr. KHANNA, and Ms. SHEA-PORTER) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the National Labor Relations Act to strengthen 

protections for employees to exercise their rights to organize and collectively bargain for improved wages, hours, 

or other terms and conditions of employment, to sanction 

violations of such rights and assure meaningful remedies, 

to establish a process by which employers and employees 

conclude initial collective bargaining agreements, and for 

other purposes. 


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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 ‘‘Workplace Action for 

5 a Growing Economy Act’’ or the ‘‘WAGE Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The National Labor Relations Act (29 

9 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) was enacted to encourage the 

10 practice of collective bargaining and to protect the 

11 exercise by workers of full freedom of association in 

12 the workplace. Since its enactment in 1935, tens of 

13 millions of workers have bargained with their em14 ployers over wages, benefits, and other terms and 

15 conditions of employment and have raised the stand16 ard of living for all workers. 

17 (2) According to research by the Bureau of 

18 Labor Statistics, through acting collectively and bar19 gaining with their employers, workers who are 

20 unionized earn 25.2 percent more than workers who 

21 are not covered by a collective bargaining agreement. 

22 They are 40.8 percent more likely to be offered 

23 health insurance through work and nearly 5 times as 

24 likely to have employer-provided defined benefit pen25 sions. The wage differential is significant for women 


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1 and people of color. Unionized African-American 

2 workers earn 25.1 percent more than African-Amer3 ican workers who are not unionized, and unionized 

4 Latino workers earn 45.7 percent more than their 

5 peers who are not unionized. Unionized women earn 

6 32.1 percent more than women who are not union7 ized, and the wage gap between men and women is 

8 much smaller at unionized workplaces. The wage 

9 gains achieved through collective bargaining agree10 ments benefit workers and their communities. 

11 (3) Unions and collective bargaining ensure 

12 that productivity gains are shared by working peo13 ple. The decline in the percentage of workers covered 

14 by collective bargaining has contributed significantly 

15 to skyrocketing income inequality and flat wages. 

16 (4) As enacted in 1935, the National Labor Re17 lations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) protects the 

18 right of all workers to join together with their co19 workers to advocate for improvements in their pay, 

20 benefits, and working conditions, regardless of 

21 whether they seek representation by a union. The 

22 law protects the right of workers to discuss issues 

23 like pay and benefits without retaliation or inter24 ference by employers. However, the awareness of 

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1 ing, and many employers maintain policies that re2 strict the ability of workers to discuss workplace 

3 issues with each other, directly contravening these 

4 rights. Research shows that more than one-half of 

5 workers report that their employers have policies 

6 that prohibit or discourage workers from discussing 

7 pay with their co-workers. These policies and prac8 tices impede workers from exercising their rights 

9 under the law and impair their freedom of associa10 tion at work. 

11 (5) Retaliation by employers against workers 

12 who exercise their rights under the National Labor 

13 Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) persists at 

14 troubling levels. Employers routinely fire workers for 

15 trying to form a union at their workplace. In one out 

16 of 3 organizing campaigns, one or more workers are 

17 discharged for supporting or joining a union. From 

18 fiscal years 2014 through 2016, the National Labor 

19 Relations Board obtained reinstatement orders for 

20 6,997 workers and obtained awards totaling over 

21 $193,000,000 for backpay and other damages for 

22 workers who faced illegal retaliation for exercising 

23 their rights. 

24 (6) The current remedies are inadequate to 

25 deter employers from violating the National Labor 


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1 Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.). The remedies 

2 and penalties for violations of the National Labor 

3 Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) are far weaker 

4 than for other labor and employment laws, including 

5 the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et 

6 seq.). Unlike other major labor and employment 

7 laws, there are no civil penalties for violations of the 

8 law. Workers cannot go to court to pursue relief on 

9 their own; they must rely on the National Labor Re10 lations Board to prosecute their case. 

11 (7) Unlike orders of other federal agencies, the 

12 National Labor Relations Board’s orders are not en13 forced until the Board seeks enforcement from the 

14 Court of Appeals. As far back as 1969, the Adminis15 trative Conference of the United States recognized 

16 that the absence of a self-enforcing agency order im17 poses wasteful delays in the enforcement of the Act, 

18 and recommended that the Board’s orders be made 

19 self-enforcing like those of other agencies. Congress 

20 did not act upon this recommendation, and delays in 

21 the Board’s enforcement remain a problem for the 

22 Act to be an effective law. 

23 (8) Many workers do not currently enjoy the 

24 protections of the Act because they are excluded 


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1 from coverage by the statute or interpretations of 

2 the statute. 

3 (9) Too often, workers who choose to form 

4 unions are frustrated when their employers use delay 

5 and other tactics to avoid reaching an initial collec6 tive bargaining agreement. Estimates are that in as 

7 many as half of new organizing campaigns, workers 

8 and their employers fail to reach an initial collective 

9 bargaining agreement. 

10 (10) In order to make the right to collective 

11 bargaining and freedom of association in the work12 place a reality for workers, the National Labor Rela13 tions Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) must be strength14 ened. 

15 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

16 The purposes of this Act are to— 

17 (1) strengthen protections for employees en18 gaged in collective action to improve their wages, 

19 hours, and terms and conditions of employment; 

20 (2) expand coverage under the Act to more em21 ployees; 

22 (3) provide a process by which workers and em23 ployers can successfully negotiate an initial collective 

24 bargaining agreement; 


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1 (4) provide for stronger remedies for employees 

2 who face retaliation, discrimination, or other inter3 ference with the legal right of the employees to en4 gage in collective action; 

5 (5) provide for penalties against employers who 

6 violate the rights of employees to engage in collective 

7 action, in order to act as a meaningful deterrent 

8 against violating the law; and 

9 (6) streamline the enforcement procedures of 

10 the National Labor Relations Board to provide for 

11 more timely and effective enforcement of the law. 

12 SEC. 4. STRENGTHENING REMEDIES AND ENFORCEMENT 

13 FOR EMPLOYEES EXERCISING THEIR RIGHTS 

14 AT WORK. 

15 (a) BACKPAY.—Section 10(c) of the National Labor 

16 Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 160(c)) is amended by striking 

17 ‘‘And provided further,’’ and inserting ‘‘Provided further, 

18 That if the Board finds that an employer has discrimi19 nated against an employee in violation of paragraph (3) 

20 or (4) of section 8(a) or has committed a violation of sec21 tion 8(a) that results in the discharge of an employee or 

22 other serious economic harm to an employee, the Board 

23 shall award the employee back pay and an additional 

24 amount as liquidated damages equal to 2 times the 

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1 ing any reduction based on the employee’s interim earn2 ings or failure to earn interim earnings): Provided fur3 ther,’’. 

4 (b) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Section 12 of the National 

5 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 162) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘SEC. 12. Any person’’ and in7 serting the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 12. PENALTIES. 

9 ‘‘(a) VIOLATIONS FOR INTERFERENCE WITH

10 BOARD.—Any person’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(b) CIVIL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF POSTING

13 REQUIREMENTS.—If the Board, or any agent or agency 

14 designated by the Board for such purposes, determines 

15 that an employer has violated section 8(h), the Board 

16 shall— 

17 ‘‘(1) state the findings of fact supporting such 

18 determination; 

19 ‘‘(2) issue and cause to be served on such em20 ployer an order requiring that such employer post 

21 the notice described in such section and provide the 

22 information to new employees described in such sec23 tion; and 

24 ‘‘(3) impose a civil penalty in an amount deter25 mined appropriate by the Board, except that in no 


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1 case shall the amount of the fine exceed $500 for 

2 each such violation. 

3 ‘‘(c) VIOLATIONS CAUSING SERIOUS ECONOMIC

4 HARM TO EMPLOYEES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any employer who commits 

6 an unfair labor practice within the meaning of para7 graph (3) or (4) of section 8(a) or a violation of sec8 tion 8(a) that results in the discharge of an em9 ployee or other serious economic harm to an em10 ployee shall, in addition to any remedy ordered by 

11 the Board, be subject to a civil penalty. Such penalty 

12 shall be in an amount not to exceed $50,000 for 

13 each violation, except that the Board shall double 

14 the amount of such penalty, to an amount not to ex15 ceed $100,000, in any case where the employer has 

16 within the preceding 5 years committed another 

17 such violation. 

18 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining the 

19 amount of any civil penalty under this subsection, 

20 the Board shall consider— 

21 ‘‘(A) the gravity of the unfair labor prac22 tice; 

23 ‘‘(B) the impact of the unfair labor prac24 tice on the charging party, on other persons 


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1 seeking to exercise rights guaranteed by this 

2 Act, and on the public interest; and 

3 ‘‘(C) the size of the employer. 

4 ‘‘(3) DIRECTOR AND OFFICER LIABILITY.—If 

5 the Board determines, based on the particular facts 

6 and circumstances presented, that a director or offi7 cer’s personal liability is warranted, a civil penalty 

8 for a violation described in this subsection may also 

9 be assessed against any director or officer of the em10 ployer who directed or committed the violation, had 

11 established a policy that led to such violations, or 

12 had knowledge of and the authority to prevent the 

13 violation and failed to do so. 

14 ‘‘(d) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—An employer 

15 shall be jointly and severally liable under this Act for any 

16 violations of this Act involving one or more employees sup17 plied by another employer to perform labor within the em18 ployer’s usual course of business.’’. 

19 (c) INJUNCTIONS AGAINST UNFAIR LABOR PRAC20 TICES INVOLVING DISCHARGE OR OTHER SERIOUS ECO21 NOMIC LOSS.—Section 10(j) of the National Labor Rela22 tions Act (29 U.S.C. 160(j)) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘(j) The Board’’ and inserting 

24 the following: 

25 ‘‘(j)(1) The Board’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding subsection (m) of section 10, 

3 whenever it is charged that an employer has engaged in 

4 an unfair labor practice within the meaning of paragraph 

5 (1) or (3) of section 8(a) that significantly interferes with, 

6 restrains, or coerces employees in the exercise of the rights 

7 guaranteed under section 7, or involves discharge or other 

8 serious economic harm to an employee, the preliminary in9 vestigation of such charge shall be made forthwith and 

10 given priority over all cases except cases of like character 

11 in the office where it is filed or to which it is referred. 

12 If, after such investigation, the officer or regional attorney 

13 to whom the matter may be referred has reasonable cause 

14 to believe such charge is true and that a complaint should 

15 issue, he shall bring a petition for appropriate temporary 

16 relief or restraining order as set forth in paragraph (1). 

17 The district court shall grant the relief requested unless 

18 the court concludes that there is no reasonable likelihood 

19 that the Board will succeed on the merits of the Board’s 

20 claim.’’. 

21 (d) PRIVATE ENFORCEMENT.— 

22 (1) RIGHT TO CIVIL ACTION.—Section 12 of the 

23 National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 162), as 

24 amended by subsection (b), is further amended by 

25 adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(e) RIGHT TO CIVIL ACTION.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who is injured 

3 by reason of any violation of paragraph (1) or (3) 

4 of section 8(a) may, in addition to or in lieu of filing 

5 a charge alleging such unfair labor practice with the 

6 Board in accordance with this Act, bring a civil ac7 tion in the appropriate district court of the United 

8 States against the employer within 180 days of the 

9 violation. 

10 ‘‘(2) AVAILABLE RELIEF.—Relief granted in an 

11 action under paragraph (1) may include any relief 

12 authorized by section 706(g) of the Civil Rights Act 

13 of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–5(g) or by section 

14 1977A(b) of the Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 

15 1981a(b))). 

16 ‘‘(3) ATTORNEY’S FEE.—In any action or pro17 ceeding under this subsection, the court may allow 

18 the prevailing party a reasonable attorney’s fee (in19 cluding expert fees) as part of the costs.’’. 

20 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 10(b) 

21 of the National Labor Relations Act is amended by 

22 striking ‘‘six months’’ and inserting ‘‘180 days’’. 

23 (e) ENSURING FAIR REMEDIES FOR ALL WORK24 ERS.—Section 10(c) of the National Labor Relations Act 

25 (29 U.S.C. 160(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘suffered by 


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1 him:’’ and inserting ‘‘suffered by such employee: Provided 

2 further, That back pay shall not be denied on the basis 

3 that the employee is, or was during the time of relevant 

4 employment or during the back pay period, an unauthor5 ized alien as defined in section 274A(h)(3) of the Immi6 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324a(h)(3)) or any 

7 other provision of Federal law relating to the unlawful em8 ployment of aliens:’’. 

9 (f) REMEDYING ELECTION INTERFERENCE.—Section 

10 9(c) of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 

11 159(c)) is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5) as 

13 paragraphs (6) and (7), respectively; and 

14 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(4) BARGAINING ORDER BASED ON MAJORITY

17 OF VOTES.—If the Board finds that, in an election 

18 under paragraph (1), a majority of the valid votes 

19 cast in a unit appropriate for purposes of collective 

20 bargaining have been cast in favor of representation 

21 by the labor organization, the Board shall issue an 

22 order requiring the employer to collectively bargain 

23 with the labor organization in accordance with sec24 tion 8(d). This order shall be deemed an order under 


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1 section 10(c) of the Act, without need for a deter2 mination of an unfair labor practice. 

3 ‘‘(5) DISMISSAL; BARGAINING ORDERS IN

4 OTHER SITUATIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) DISMISSAL.—If the Board finds that, 

6 in an election under paragraph (1), a majority 

7 of the valid votes cast in a unit appropriate for 

8 purposes of collective bargaining have not been 

9 cast in favor of representation by the labor or10 ganization, the Board shall dismiss the petition, 

11 subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C). 

12 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULES FOR EMPLOYER VIO13 LATIONS OR INTERFERENCE.—In any case 

14 where a majority of the valid votes cast in a 

15 unit appropriate for purposes of collective bar16 gaining have not been cast in favor or represen17 tation by the labor organization and the Board 

18 determines that the election should be set aside 

19 because the employer has committed a violation 

20 of this Act or otherwise interfered with a fair 

21 election, and the employer has not dem22 onstrated that the violation or other inter23 ference is unlikely to have affected the outcome 

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1 quiring the employer to bargain with the labor 

2 organization in accordance with section 8(d) if, 

3 at any time during the period beginning 1 year 

4 preceding the date of the commencement of the 

5 election and ending on the date upon which the 

6 Board makes the determination of a violation or 

7 other interference under subparagraph (A), a 

8 majority of the employees in the bargaining 

9 unit have signed authorizations designating the 

10 labor organization as their collective bargaining 

11 representative. 

12 ‘‘(C) OTHER ELECTION INTERFERENCE.— 

13 In any case where the Board determines that 

14 an election under this paragraph should be set 

15 aside, the Board shall direct a rerun election 

16 with appropriate additional safeguards nec17 essary to ensure a fair election process, except 

18 in cases where the Board issues a bargaining 

19 order under subparagraph (B).’’. 

20 SEC. 5. MODERNIZATION. 

21 (a) PREVENTION OF UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES.— 

22 Section 8 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 

23 158) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(h) POSTINGS OF NOTICE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall promul2 gate regulations requiring each employer to post and 

3 maintain, in conspicuous places where notices to em4 ployees and applicants for employment are custom5 arily posted both physically and electronically, a no6 tice setting forth the rights and protections afforded 

7 employees under this Act. The Board shall provide 

8 to employers the form and text of such notice. 

9 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION OF NEW EMPLOYEES.—The 

10 Board shall promulgate regulations requiring em11 ployers to notify each new employee of the informa12 tion contained in the notice described in paragraph 

13 (1).’’. 

14 (b) ENFORCING COMPLIANCE WITH ORDERS OF THE

15 BOARD.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 10 of the National 

17 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 160) is amended— 

18 (A) by striking subsection (e); 

19 (B) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub20 section (e); 

21 (C) by inserting after subsection (c) the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(d) ENFORCING COMPLIANCE WITH ORDERS OF

24 THE BOARD.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each order of the Board 

2 shall take effect upon issuance, unless otherwise di3 rected by the Board, and shall remain in effect, un4 less modified by the Board or unless a court of com5 petent jurisdiction issues a superseding order. 

6 ‘‘(2) VIOLATIONS OF ORDERS BY THE BOARD.— 

7 Any person who fails or neglects to obey an order 

8 of the Board shall forfeit and pay to the Board a 

9 civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for each vio10 lation, which shall accrue to the Board and may be 

11 recovered in a civil action brought by the Board to 

12 the district court of the United States in which the 

13 unfair labor practice or other subject of the order 

14 occurred, or in which such person or entity resides 

15 or transacts business. Each separate violation of 

16 such an order shall be a separate offense, except 

17 that in a case of violation through continuing failure 

18 to obey or neglect to obey a final order of the Board, 

19 each day of continuance of such failure or neglect 

20 shall be deemed a separate offense. No action by the 

21 Board under this paragraph may be made until 30 

22 days following the issuance of an order. 

23 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURE.—If, after having provided a 

24 person or entity with notice and an opportunity to 

25 be heard regarding a request under paragraph (2) 


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1 for the enforcement of an order, the court deter2 mines that the order was regularly made and duly 

3 served, and that the person or entity is in disobe4 dience of the same, the court shall enforce obedience 

5 to such order by a writ of injunction or other proper 

6 process, mandatory or otherwise, to— 

7 ‘‘(A) restrain such person or entity or the 

8 officers, agents, or representatives of such per9 son or entity, from further disobedience of such 

10 order; or 

11 ‘‘(B) enjoin upon such person or entity, of12 ficers, agents, or representatives obedience to 

13 the same.’’; 

14 (D) in subsection (f)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘proceed in the same 

16 manner as in the case of an application by 

17 the Board under subsection (e) of this sec18 tion’’ and inserting ‘‘proceed as provided 

19 under paragraph (2) of this subsection’’; 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘Any’’ and inserting 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(1) Within 30 days of the issuance of an 

23 order, any’’; and 

24 (iii) by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(2) No objection that has not been urged be2 fore the Board, its member, agent, or agency, shall 

3 be considered by a court, unless the failure or ne4 glect to urge such objection shall be excused because 

5 of extraordinary circumstances. The findings of the 

6 Board with respect to questions of fact if supported 

7 by substantial evidence on the record considered as 

8 a whole shall be conclusive. If either party shall 

9 apply to the court for leave to adduce additional evi10 dence and shall show to the satisfaction of the court 

11 that such additional evidence is material and that 

12 there were reasonable grounds for the failure to ad13 duce such evidence in the hearing before the Board, 

14 its member, agent, or agency, the court may order 

15 such additional evidence to be taken before the 

16 Board, its member, agent, or agency, and to be 

17 made a part of the record. The Board may modify 

18 its findings as to the facts, or make new findings, 

19 by reason of additional evidence so taken and filed, 

20 and it shall file such modified or new findings, which 

21 findings with respect to questions of fact if sup22 ported by substantial evidence on the record consid23 ered as a whole shall be conclusive, and shall file its 

24 recommendations, if any, for the modification or set25 ting aside of its original order. Upon the filing of the 


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1 record with it the jurisdiction of the court shall be 

2 exclusive and its judgment and decree shall be final, 

3 except that the same shall be subject to review by 

4 the appropriate United States court of appeals if ap5 plication was made to the district court, and by the 

6 Supreme Court of the United States upon writ of 

7 certiorari or certification as provided in section 1254 

8 of title 28, United States Code.’’. 

9 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—The National 

10 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) is fur11 ther amended— 

12 (A) in section 9(d), by striking ‘‘section 

13 10(e) or 10(f)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (d) or 

14 (f) of section 10’’; and 

15 (B) in section 10— 

16 (i) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘sub17 section (e) of this section’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘subsection (d)’’; and 

19 (ii) in subsection (g), by striking 

20 ‘‘subsection (e) or (f) of this section’’ and 

21 inserting ‘‘subsection (d) or (f)’’. 

22 SEC. 6. COVERAGE. 

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1 TECTIONS OF THE ACT.—Section 2(11) of the National 

2 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 152(11)) is amended— 

3 (1) by inserting ‘‘and for a majority of the indi4 vidual’s worktime’’ after ‘‘interest of the employer’’; 

5 (2) by striking ‘‘assign,’’; and 

6 (3) by striking ‘‘or responsibly to direct them,’’. 

7 (b) ENSURING THAT EMPLOYEES ARE NOT

8 MISCLASSIFIED AS INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS AND

9 DENIED THE PROTECTIONS OF THE ACT.—Section 2(3) 

10 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 152(3)) 

11 is amended by inserting at the end of the section the fol12 lowing: ‘‘An individual performing any service shall be 

13 considered to be an employee and not an independent con14 tractor unless— 

15 ‘‘(A) the individual is free from control and di16 rection in connection with the performance of the 

17 service, both under the contract for the performance 

18 of service and in fact; 

19 ‘‘(B) the service is performed outside the usual 

20 course of the business of the employer; and 

21 ‘‘(C) the individual is customarily engaged in an 

22 independently established trade, occupation, profes23 sion or business of the same nature as that involved 

24 in the service performed.’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. FACILITATING INITIAL COLLECTIVE BARGAINING 

2 AGREEMENTS. 

3 Section 8 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 

4 U.S.C. 158), as amended by section 5(a), is further 

5 amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(i) Whenever collective bargaining is for the purpose 

7 of establishing an initial agreement following certification 

8 or recognition, the provisions of subsection (d) shall be 

9 modified as follows: 

10 ‘‘(1) Not later than 10 days after receiving a 

11 written request for collective bargaining from an in12 dividual or labor organization that has been newly 

13 organized or certified as a representative as defined 

14 in section 9(a), or within such further period as the 

15 parties agree upon, the parties shall meet and com16 mence to bargain collectively and shall make every 

17 reasonable effort to conclude and sign a collective 

18 bargaining agreement. 

19 ‘‘(2) If after the expiration of the 90-day period 

20 beginning on the date on which bargaining is com21 menced, or such additional period as the parties may 

22 agree upon, the parties have failed to reach an 

23 agreement, either party may notify the Federal Me24 diation and Conciliation Service of the existence of 

25 a dispute and request mediation. Whenever such a 

26 request is received, it shall be the duty of the Service 


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1 promptly to put itself in communication with the 

2 parties and to use its best efforts, by mediation and 

3 conciliation, to bring them to agreement. 

4 ‘‘(3) If after the expiration of the 30-day period 

5 beginning on the date on which the request for me6 diation is made under paragraph (2), or such addi7 tional period as the parties may agree upon, the 

8 Service is not able to bring the parties to agreement 

9 by conciliation, the Service shall refer the dispute to 

10 a tripartite arbitration panel established in accord11 ance with such regulations as may be prescribed by 

12 the Service. The arbitration panel shall render a de13 cision settling the dispute and such decision shall be 

14 binding upon the parties for a period of 2 years, un15 less amended during such period by written consent 

16 of the parties.’’. 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with BILLS