Title: Workplace Democracy Act
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Workplace Democracy Act
This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act and related labor laws to preserve workers' rights to join labor organizations and engage in collective bargaining. Specifically, it

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2810 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2810

  To amend the National Labor Relations Act to establish an efficient 
       system to enable employees to form, join, or assist labor 
                 organizations, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 9, 2018

 Mr. Sanders (for himself, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Warren, Mr. Brown, Ms. 
   Baldwin, Mr. Whitehouse, Ms. Harris, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Markey, Mr. 
   Booker, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Leahy, and Mr. Van Hollen) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the National Labor Relations Act to establish an efficient 
       system to enable employees to form, join, or assist labor 
                 organizations, 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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Workplace Democracy Act''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS ACT.

    (a) Coverage.--Section 2 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 
U.S.C. 152) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (3), by adding at the end the following: 
        ``An individual performing any service shall be considered an 
        employee (except as provided in the previous sentence) and not 
        an independent contractor, unless--
            ``(A) the individual is free from control and direction in 
        connection with the performance of the service, both under the 
        contract for the performance of service and in fact;
            ``(B) the service is performed outside the usual course of 
        the business of the employer; and
            ``(C) the individual is customarily engaged in an 
        independently established trade, occupation, profession, or 
        business of the same nature as that involved in the service 
        performed.''; and
            (2) in paragraph (11)--
                    (A) by inserting ``and for a majority of the 
                individual's worktime'' after ``interest of the 
                employer'';
                    (B) by striking ``assign,''; and
                    (C) by striking ``or responsibly to direct them,''.
    (b) Unfair Labor Practices; Secondary Boycotts and Picketing.--
            (1) In general.--Section 8 of the National Labor Relations 
        Act (29 U.S.C. 158) is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) in paragraph (5), by striking the 
                        period and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (ii) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(6) to coerce any employee into attending or participating in 
campaign activities that are unrelated to the employee's job duties.'';
                    (B) in subsection (b)--
                            (i) by striking paragraphs (4) and (7); and
                            (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and 
                        (6) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 
                        and
                    (C) by repealing subsection (e).
            (2) Prevention of unfair labor practices.--Section 10 of 
        the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 160) is amended--
                    (A) by striking subsections (k) and (l); and
                    (B) by redesignating subsection (m) as subsection 
                (k).
            (3) Facilitating collective bargaining agreements.--Section 
        8 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 158), as so 
        amended, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Whenever collective bargaining is for the purpose of 
establishing an initial agreement following certification or 
recognition, the provisions of subsection (d) shall be modified as 
follows:
            ``(1) Not later than 10 days after receiving a written 
        request for collective bargaining from an individual or labor 
        organization that has been newly organized or certified as a 
        representative as defined in section 9(a), or within such 
        further period as the parties agree upon, the parties shall 
        meet and commence to bargain collectively and shall make every 
        reasonable effort to conclude and sign a collective bargaining 
        agreement.
            ``(2) If after the expiration of the 90-day period 
        beginning on the date on which bargaining is commenced, or such 
        additional period as the parties may agree upon, the parties 
        have failed to reach an agreement, either party may notify the 
        Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service of the existence of 
        a dispute and request mediation. Whenever such a request is 
        received, it shall be the duty of the Service promptly to put 
        itself in communication with the parties and to use its best 
        efforts, by mediation and conciliation, to bring them to 
        agreement.
            ``(3) If after the expiration of the 30-day period 
        beginning on the date on which the request for mediation is 
        made under paragraph (2), or such additional period as the 
        parties may agree upon, the Service is not able to bring the 
        parties to agreement by conciliation, the Service shall refer 
        the dispute to an arbitration board established in accordance 
        with such regulations as may be prescribed by the Service. The 
        arbitration board shall render a decision settling the dispute 
        and such decision shall be binding upon the parties for a 
        period of 2 years, unless amended during such period by written 
        consent of the parties.''.
    (c) Streamlining Certification for Labor Organizations.--The 
National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 3(b) (29 U.S.C. 153(b))--
                    (A) by striking ``and to'' and inserting ``to''; 
                and
                    (B) by striking ``and certify the results 
                thereof,'' and inserting ``, and to issue 
                certifications as provided for in that section,''; and
            (2) in section 9(c) (29 U.S.C. 159(c)), by adding at the 
        end the following:
    ``(6) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, whenever 
a petition shall have been filed by an employee or group of employees 
or any individual or labor organization acting in their behalf alleging 
that a majority of employees in a unit appropriate for the purposes of 
collective bargaining wish to be represented by an individual or labor 
organization for such purposes, the Board shall investigate the 
petition. If the Board finds that a majority of the employees in a unit 
appropriate for purposes of collective bargaining has signed valid 
authorizations designating the individual or labor organization 
specified in the petition as their bargaining representative and that 
no other individual or labor organization is currently certified or 
recognized as the exclusive representative of any of the employees in 
the unit, the Board shall not direct an election but shall certify the 
individual or labor organization as the representative described in 
subsection (a).
    ``(7) The Board shall develop guidelines and procedures for the 
designation by employees of a bargaining representative in the manner 
described in paragraph (6). Such guidelines and procedures shall 
include--
            ``(A) model collective bargaining authorization language 
        that may be used for purposes of making the designations 
        described in paragraph (6); and
            ``(B) procedures to be used by the Board to establish the 
        validity of signed authorizations designating bargaining 
        representatives.''.
    (d) Preempting State Right-to-Work for Less Laws.--Subsection (b) 
of section 14 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 164) is 
repealed.
    (e) Joint and Several Liability.--The National Labor Relations Act 
(29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 20. JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.

    ``(a) In General.--A joint employer shall be jointly and severally 
liable under this Act for any violations of this Act involving one or 
more employees supplied by another employer to perform labor within the 
joint employer's usual course of business.
    ``(b) Joint Employer.--An employer shall be considered a joint 
employer of employees of another employer for purposes of this Act, if 
such employer possesses, reserves, or exercises enough direct or 
indirect control over such employees' essential terms and conditions of 
employment to permit meaningful collective bargaining between the 
employer and such employees.''.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO THE LABOR MANAGEMENT RELATIONS ACT, 1947, WITH 
              RESPECT TO SECONDARY BOYCOTTS.

    Section 303 of the Labor Management Relations Act, 1947 (29 U.S.C. 
187) is repealed.

SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT 
              OF 1959.

    (a) Persuader Reporting and Disclosure Parity Requirements.--
Section 203 of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 
1959 (29 U.S.C. 433) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (c), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting the following: ``: Provided, That this subsection 
        shall not exempt from the requirements of this section any 
        arrangement or part of an arrangement in which a party agrees 
        to draft speeches, presentations, or other written, recorded, 
        or electronic communications to be delivered or disseminated to 
        employees for an object described in subsection (b)(1).''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Anti-Labor Organization Campaigns.--
            ``(1) Payment report.--
                    ``(A) In general.--An employer who makes any 
                payment (including reimbursed expenses) to a labor 
                relations consultant or other independent contractor or 
                organization pursuant to an agreement or arrangement 
                described in subsection (a)(4) involving activities to 
                disfavor a labor organization or weaken the rights of 
                employees to organize and bargain collectively shall, 
                except as provided in subparagraph (C), provide a 
                report described in subparagraph (B) to the Secretary 
                every 7 days if such a payment was made during such 7-
                day period.
                    ``(B) Contents of report.--The report described in 
                this subparagraph shall contain--
                            ``(i) the contents of the report described 
                        in subsection (a) with respect to any payment 
                        described in subparagraph (A) made during the 
                        applicable period of the report; and
                            ``(ii) the total amount of all such 
                        payments made pursuant to the agreement or 
                        arrangement described in such subparagraph.
                    ``(C) Representation elections.--For the 7-day 
                period immediately prior to the date of a 
                representation election, an employer required to 
                provide a report under subparagraph (A) shall provide 
                such report to the Secretary every 24 hours if such a 
                payment was made during such 24-hour period.
                    ``(D) Third-party entity reporting.--The Secretary 
                shall establish procedures for any third-party entity 
                that enters into an agreement or an arrangement with an 
                employer to engage in activities to disfavor a labor 
                organization or weaken the rights of employees to 
                organize and bargain collectively to provide reports to 
                the Secretary that are consistent with the procedures 
                for the reports required of employers under 
                subparagraphs (A) through (C).
            ``(2) Negative information.--Not later than 7 days after an 
        employer disseminates to employees information that disfavors a 
        labor organization or the rights of employees to organize and 
        bargain collectively, the employer shall disclose such 
        information, including the names and contact information for 
        employees receiving the information, to the affected labor 
        organization and to the Secretary.
            ``(3) Registration and certification of persuaders.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A labor relations consultant or 
                other independent contractor or organization that 
                provides services pursuant to an agreement or 
                arrangement described in paragraph (1)(A) shall prior 
                to, and as a condition for, providing such services 
                register with and be certified by the Office of Labor 
                Management Standards.
                    ``(B) Process for registration and certification.--
                The Secretary shall prescribe a process for the 
                registration and certification required under 
                subparagraph (A). Such process shall include requiring 
                the labor relations consultant, other independent 
                contractor, or organization described in such 
                subparagraph to--
                            ``(i) provide its name, address, business 
                        telephone number, and principal place of 
                        business;
                            ``(ii) provide the name of its principal 
                        officers, if any;
                            ``(iii) provide a general description of 
                        its business activities; and
                            ``(iv) submit to a criminal background 
                        check conducted by the Secretary at the expense 
                        of such consultant, independent contractor, or 
                        organization.
                    ``(C) Prohibition against registering and 
                certifying certain persons.--The Office of Labor 
                Management Standards shall not register and certify 
                under this paragraph any labor relations consultant, 
                independent contractor, or organization that has been 
                convicted of any offense described in section 
                504(a).''.
    (b) Penalties.--Section 210 of the Labor-Management Reporting and 
Disclosure Act of 1959 (29 U.S.C. 440) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Whenever'' and inserting ``(a) 
        Whenever''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall 
impose on any employer that violates paragraph (1) or (2) of section 
203(h) a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $10,000 for each 
violation.
    ``(2) An employer shall not be subject to a civil penalty under 
paragraph (1) if the employer can show a good faith attempt to comply 
with paragraph (1) or (2) of section 203(h).
    ``(3) The Secretary shall impose on any labor relations consultant 
or other independent contractor or organization that violates section 
203(h)(3) a civil penalty in the amount of $250 per day for each day 
the consultant, independent contractor, or organization is not in 
compliance with such section.''.
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