Worker Safety in Climate Disasters Act
Bill: H.R.8819 | Sponsor: Rep. Bush, Cori (D-MO)
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Worker Safety in Climate Disasters Act
This bill provides paid emergency leave time (80 hours for a full-time employee) for an employee who is unable to work (or telework) due to certain climate disasters.

To provide employment protection and paid emergency leave to workers 
     impacted by certain climate disasters, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Worker Safety in 
Climate Disasters Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Paid emergency time.
Sec. 3. Employment protection during climate disaster.
Sec. 4. Employer requirements.
Sec. 5. Prohibited acts.
Sec. 6. Enforcement.
Sec. 7. Definitions.
Sec. 8. Regulatory authorities.
Sec. 9. Rules of construction.
Sec. 10. Effective date.

SEC. 2. PAID EMERGENCY TIME.

    (a) In General.--An employer shall provide to each employee 
employed by the employer paid emergency time to the extent that the 
employee is unable to work (or telework) due to an applicable climate 
disaster, including--
            (1) a need to relocate for safety;
            (2) recovery efforts relating to economic stability and 
        community safety--
                    (A) in the community in which the employee resides;
                    (B) at the workplace of the employee; and
                    (C) at the home of the employee;
            (3) a need to care for family members resulting from the 
        closure of schools or other facilities;
            (4) an injury or illness affecting either the employee or 
        their immediate family; and
            (5) disruptions of public transit services or commuter 
        routes.
    (b) Duration of Paid Emergency Time.--
            (1) In general.--An employee shall be entitled to paid 
        emergency time for a number of hours determined under paragraph 
        (2).
            (2) Number of hours.--The number of hours of paid emergency 
        time to which an employee is entitled during an applicable 
        climate disaster period shall be as follows:
                    (A) For full-time employees, 80 hours.
                    (B) For part-time employees, a number of hours 
                equal to the number of hours that such employee works, 
                on average, over a 2-week period.
    (c) Prohibition.--An employer may not require, as a condition of 
providing paid emergency time under this Act, that the employee 
involved search for or find a replacement employee to cover the hours 
during which the employee is using paid emergency time.
    (d) Availability of Paid Emergency Time.--The paid emergency time 
under subsection (a) shall be available for immediate use by the 
employee for the purposes described in such subsection, regardless of 
how long the employee has been employed by an employer.
    (e) Prohibition on Substitution of Leave Time.--An employer may not 
require an employee to substitute any of the accrued paid vacation 
leave, personal leave, or family leave of such employee for paid 
emergency time provided under subsection (a).
    (f) Amount of Paid Emergency Time.--
            (1) In general.--The amount of paid emergency time provided 
        to an employee under this section shall be calculated based on 
        the employee's required compensation under paragraph (2) and 
        the number of hours the employee would otherwise be normally 
        scheduled to work (or the number of hours calculated under 
        paragraph (3)), except that in no event shall the amount of 
        such paid emergency time paid per day exceed--
                    (A) for calendar year 2022, $511; and
                    (B) for any calendar year after 2022, an amount 
                equal to the product of--
                            (i) $511, multiplied by
                            (ii) the quotient obtained by dividing--
                                    (I) the Consumer Price Index for 
                                Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers 
                                (as published by the Bureau of Labor 
                                Statistics) for the calendar year 
                                immediately preceding such calendar 
                                year; by
                                    (II) the Consumer Price Index for 
                                calendar year 2021.
            (2) Required compensation.--Subject to paragraph (1), the 
        employee's required compensation under this subparagraph shall 
        be not less than the greater of the following:
                    (A) The employee's regular rate of pay (as 
                determined under section 7(e) of the Fair Labor 
                Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207(e))).
                    (B) The minimum wage rate in effect under section 
                6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 
                U.S.C. 206(a)(1)).
                    (C) The minimum wage rate in effect for such 
                employee in the applicable State or locality, whichever 
                is greater, in which the employee is employed.
            (3) Varying schedule hours calculation.--In the case of a 
        part-time employee described in subsection (b)(2)(B) whose 
        schedule varies from week to week to such an extent that an 
        employer is unable to determine with certainty the number of 
        hours the employee would have worked if such employee had not 
        taken paid emergency time under subsection (a), the employer 
        shall use the following in place of such number:
                    (A) Subject to subparagraph (B), a number equal to 
                the average number of hours that the employee was 
                scheduled per week over the 6-month period ending on 
                the date on which the employee takes the paid emergency 
                time, including hours for which the employee took leave 
                of any type.
                    (B) If the employee did not work over such period, 
                the reasonable expectation of the employee at the time 
                of hiring of the average number of hours per week that 
                the employee would normally be scheduled to work.
            (4) Guidelines.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall issue 
        guidelines to assist employers in calculating the amount of 
        paid emergency time under paragraph (1).
            (5) Reasonable and practicable notice.--After the first 
        workday (or portion thereof) an employee receives paid 
        emergency time under this Act, an employer may require the 
        employee to follow reasonable and practicable notice procedures 
        in order to continue receiving such paid emergency time.
            (6) Publication of pay limitation.--Not later than December 
        1 of each year, the Secretary of Labor shall publish the amount 
        determined under paragraph (1)(B) that will be in effect for 
        the following calendar year.

SEC. 3. EMPLOYMENT PROTECTION DURING CLIMATE DISASTER.

    (a) Restoration to Position.--Any eligible employee who uses paid 
emergency time under section 2 for the intended purpose of the paid 
emergency time shall be entitled, on return from using paid emergency 
time--
            (1) to be restored by the employer to the position of 
        employment held by the employee when the use of paid emergency 
        time commenced; or
            (2) to be restored to an equivalent position with 
        equivalent employment benefits, pay, and other terms and 
        conditions of employment.
    (b) Loss of Benefits.--The use of paid emergency time shall not 
result in the loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to the date 
on which the use of paid emergency time commenced.
    (c) Limitations.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to 
entitle any restored employee to--
            (1) the accrual of any seniority or employment benefits 
        during any period during which such restored employee uses paid 
        emergency time; or
            (2) any right, benefit, or position of employment other 
        than any right, benefit, or position to which the employee 
        would have been entitled had the employee not used paid 
        emergency time.
    (d) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to 
prohibit an employer from requiring an employee to report periodically 
to the employer on the status and intention of the employee to return 
to work.

SEC. 4. EMPLOYER REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Monitoring for Applicable Climate Disaster.--
            (1) In general.--An employer shall monitor for, using the 
        tools identified by the Secretary of Labor pursuant to 
        paragraph (3), and notify an employee of the existence of, 
        applicable climate disasters.
            (2) Exclusion for remote employees.--
                    (A) In general.--An employer is not required to 
                monitor for applicable climate disasters affecting 
                remote employees.
                    (B) Exclusion for remote employers.--An employer 
                who employs only remote employees shall monitor for, 
                and notify an employee of the existence of, applicable 
                climate disasters affecting the area where the largest 
                concentration of such remote employees reside.
            (3) Monitoring guidelines.--Not later than one year after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall 
        issue guidelines that identify tools for employers to use in 
        monitoring for applicable climate disasters.
    (b) Notice.--
            (1) In general.--Each employer shall post and keep posted, 
        in conspicuous places on the premises of the employer where 
        notices to employees are customarily posted, a notice, to be 
        prepared or approved by the Secretary of Labor, of the 
        requirements described in this Act.
            (2) Model notice.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall make 
        publicly available a model of a notice that meets the 
        requirements of paragraph (1).

SEC. 5. PROHIBITED ACTS.

    (a) Interference With Rights.--
            (1) Exercise of rights.--It shall be unlawful for any 
        employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of 
        or the attempt to exercise, any right provided under this Act.
            (2) Discrimination.--It shall be unlawful for any employer 
        to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any 
        individual for opposing any practice made unlawful by this Act.
    (b) Interference With Proceedings or Inquiries.--It shall be 
unlawful for any person to discharge or in any other manner 
discriminate against any individual because such individual--
            (1) has filed any charge, or has instituted or caused to be 
        instituted any proceeding, under or related to this Act;
            (2) has given, or is about to give, any information in 
        connection with any inquiry or proceeding relating to any right 
        provided under this Act; or
            (3) has testified, or is about to testify, in any inquiry 
        or proceeding relating to any right provided under this Act.

SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Unpaid Emergency Leave Time.--An employer who violates section 
2 shall--
            (1) be considered to have failed to pay minimum wages in 
        violation of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 
        (29 U.S.C. 206); and
            (2) be subject to the penalties described in sections 16 
        and 17 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216; 217) with respect to such 
        violation, except that no person shall be imprisoned under such 
        sections for a violation of section 2 of this Act.
    (b) Unlawful Action Against Employee.--An employer who willfully 
violates section 5 shall--
            (1) be considered to be in violation of section 15(a)(3) of 
        the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 215(a)(3)); and
            (2) be subject to the penalties described in sections 16 
        and 17 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 216; 217) with respect to such 
        violation, except that no person shall be imprisoned under such 
        sections for a violation of section 2 of this Act.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Employee.--The term ``employee'' means any individual 
        employed by an employer.
            (2) Employer.--
                    (A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the 
                term ``employer''--
                            (i) means any individual who employs an 
                        employee; and
                            (ii) includes any individual acting 
                        directly or indirectly in the interest of an 
                        employer in relation to an employee.
                    (B) Exclusion of public employers.--The term 
                ``employer'' does not include--
                            (i) the Government of the United States;
                            (ii) the government of any State; or
                            (iii) any unit of local government, 
                        department, agency, or instrumentality thereof.
            (3) FLSA terms.--The terms ``employ'' and ``State'' have 
        the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Fair Labor 
        Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).
            (4) Applicable climate disaster.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``applicable climate 
                disaster'' means, with respect to an employee, a 
                climate disaster determined by the Secretary to affect 
                or be likely to affect such employee.
                    (B) Climate disaster.--The term ``climate 
                disaster'' means a weather or climate event (including 
                an earthquake, flood, heat event, hurricane, severe 
                blizzard, superstorm, tornado, tsunami, utility 
                failure, volcanic explosion, or wildfire) with the 
                potential to cause great damage or loss of life.

SEC. 8. REGULATORY AUTHORITIES.

    The Secretary of Labor shall have the authority to issue 
regulations for good cause under sections 553(b)(B) and 553(d)(A) of 
title 5, United States Code--
            (1) to exempt small businesses with fewer than 50 employees 
        from the requirements of paragraphs (3) and (4) of section 2(a) 
        when the imposition of such requirements would jeopardize the 
        viability of the business as a going concern; and
            (2) as necessary, to carry out the purposes of this Act.

SEC. 9. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed--
            (1) to in any way diminish the rights or benefits that an 
        employee is entitled to under any--
                    (A) other Federal, State, or local law;
                    (B) collective bargaining agreement; or
                    (C) existing employer policy; or
            (2) to require financial or other reimbursement to an 
        employee from an employer upon the employee's termination, 
        resignation, retirement, or other separation from employment 
        for paid emergency leave time under this Act that has not been 
        used by such employee.

SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act, and the requirements under this Act, shall take effect 
not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>