Supporting America’s Working Families:
Workforce Policy Accomplishments of the 107^th Congress (First Session)

December 20, 2001

House Republicans have devoted significant energy this year to the needs of American workers and their families. From improving health care and strengthening retirement security to providing emergency relief for workers displaced by the September 11th attacks, Republicans on the House Education and the Workforce Committee have worked successfully on a number of fronts to modernize federal labor laws and help working families meet the challenges they face in today’s economy.

A quick summary of some of the major actions taken by House Republicans this year to help the American worker:

• Norwood-Fletcher Patients’ Bill of Rights. Ending six years of congressional gridlock on the difficult issue of HMO patient protection, in August the House approved a compromise patients’ bill of rights negotiated by President Bush and two members of the House Education & the Workforce Committee, Dr. Charlie Norwood (R-GA) and Dr. Ernie Fletcher (R-KY). The House-passed patients’ bill of rights will hold health plans accountable while preventing frivolous, unlimited lawsuits against employers and unions who voluntarily provide health coverage to families. The measure also gives patients a rapid medical review process for disputed denials of care, ensuring that medical decisions will be made by independent doctors and physicians, not lawyers or HMO bureaucrats.
  
  
• Repeal of Flawed Ergonomics Regulations. In March, Congress and President Bush took action to help employees and employers alike by repealing the flawed “ergonomics safety” rule imposed in November 2000 as one of the Clinton Administration’s parting acts. The regulation - one of the most complex, burdensome, and questionable rules in the 30-year history of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) - would have saddled six million employers and 93 million employees with restrictive new rules at a time when America’s economy was already showing signs of a slowdown. The repeal of this unworkable regulation allows the Labor Department to develop a responsible and comprehensive approach that truly protects the interests of workers and employers.
  
  
• Giving Workers Access to Retirement Savings Investment Advice. Wealthier Americans can afford to hire a professional investment advisor to help manage their retirement savings, but rank-and-file workers and their families can’t always afford such a luxury. As a result, many rank-and-file workers have to fend for themselves in a sea of confusing and conflicting investment information - a situation that gained new attention this year when many workers with 401(k) retirement savings accounts lost money on their investments for the first time ever. On November 15, the Republican-led House passed the Retirement Security Advice Act (H.R. 2269), with the strong support of 64 Democrats. The bill, authored by Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), modernizes federal law to allow employers to provide workers with access to professional investment advice as an employee benefit as long as the advisers fully disclose any fees or potential conflicts. The bill establishes important safeguards to ensure that workers receive advice solely in their best interest and gives workers the information they need to maximize their retirement savings.
  
  
• Pension Reform and Retirement Security. Reinforcing its commitment to enhance retirement security this year, Congress overwhelmingly approved a landmark retirement security and pension reform bill authored by Reps. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Ben Cardin (D-MD). The measure, signed into law by the President, expands retirement security options for millions of American workers and expands small business retirement plans.
  
  
• Emergency Relief for Displaced U.S. Workers. On December 20, the House passed the Economic Growth and Security Act, an economic stimulus package that includes key elements of President Bush’s plan to expand the federal “safety net” for workers displaced in the wake of the September 11th attacks and its economic aftershocks. Originally introduced in the House as the Back to Work Act by Committee Chairman John Boehner (R-OH), Employer-Employee Relations Subcommittee Chairman Sam Johnson (R-TX), and 21st Century Competitiveness Subcommittee Chairman Buck McKeon (R-CA), the provisions would help displaced workers maintain health coverage for their families while they’re out of work. They would provide $4 billion in special National Emergency Grants (NEGs) to help displaced workers maintain health coverage, supplement their income, and receive job training as the economy recovers from its current slowdown. The Education and the Workforce committee also held hearings on the issue, including one with Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, to emphasize the need to utilize existing programs to help displaced workers instead of creating new bureaucracies.
  
  
• Modernizing Federal Law for 21st Century Employees. The Subcommittee on Workforce Protections approved H.R. 2070 -- the Sales Incentive Compensation Act -- introduced by Reps. Patrick Tiberi (R-OH). H.R. 2070 addresses the problem of fitting 21st Century salespeople into a law crafted for a 1938 workforce by amending the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to provide a new exemption from minimum wage and overtime for certain types of salespeople, enabling them to be more efficient, effective, and productive.
  
  
• Helping Parents Balance Demands of Family and Work. Rep. Judy Biggert (R-IL) introduced the Working Families Flexibility Act (H.R. 1992) to give working men and women more power and control over their lives by allowing them, through an agreement with their employer, to choose paid time off as compensation for working overtime hours. The flexible working arrangement, known as ‘comp time,’ is designed to help achieve working men and women achieve a greater balance between family and work obligations.
  
  
• Helping Workers Get Extra Pay for Extra Effort. Rep. Cass Ballenger (R-NC) introduced the Rewarding Performance in Compensation Act (H.R. 1602), a bill to encourage employers to offer bonus pay to their workers. Employers have found that rewarding workers for high quality work improves performance and the ability of the company to compete. A hearing by the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, presided over by subcommittee vice-chair Judy Biggert (R-IL), revealed that while the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not prohibit employers from providing these types of rewards, it makes it difficult and confusing to do so.
  
  
• Safeguarding the Future of Retiree Health Benefits. Led by chairman Sam Johnson (R-TX), the Employer-Employee Relations Subcommittee held its first in a series of hearings to examine the issue of health care coverage for retirees. With the changing nature of the workforce and the retiree population, it is becoming increasingly more difficult for employers to meet the health or long-term care needs of their workers while remaining competitive in the global economy of the 21st century.
  
  
• Exploring Remedies to America’s National Nursing Shortage. Exploring an important issue that gained new attention in the wake of the September 11th attacks, the Education and the Workforce Committee held a full committee hearing this fall to examine the causes and impact of the national nursing shortage as well as possible remedies for Congress to consider. Hospitals are facing a growing shortage of qualified, experienced nursing professionals, and are increasingly challenged to find new ways to recruit and retain nurses.
  
  
• Genetic Non-Discrimination. The House Education & the Workforce Committee this year began an extensive look at current laws and regulations, federal and state, that protect employees from genetic discrimination and govern the use of genetic information in employer-sponsored health plans. The committee examined efforts already being taken by employers to ban genetic discrimination, and learned about the effectiveness of current laws. Witnesses urged Congress to proceed cautiously before crafting any new mandates.
  
  
• Protecting the Rights of Union Members. More than a dozen years have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Communication Workers v. Beck that should protect union members from being forced to support causes with which they genuinely disagree. But in practice, the Beck decision is rarely enforced, and individual workers still find themselves unable to freely exercise their rights. Workforce Protections Subcommittee Chairman Charles Norwood (R-GA) this year held several hearings on the enforcement (or lack of enforcement) of worker rights under the Beck decision.