WAGE Act
Latest action · Dec 5, 2017 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedDec 5, 2017
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Workplace Action for a Growing Economy Act or the WAGE Act
This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to
- require the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to award back pay and additional damages to any employee whose rights under the NLRA have been violated by an employer;
- impose penalties upon an employer for failing to post a notice of the rights of their employees under the NLRA;
- impose penalties upon an employer whose violations of the NLRA result in the discharge of an employee or other serious economic harm to the employee;
- provide civil remedies, including restraining orders, and a private right of action for violations of the NLRA;
- require the NLRB to issue an order requiring collective bargaining when a majority of valid ballots have been cast in favor of union representation;
- prevent the classification of employees as supervisors for the purpose of denying such employees the protections of the NLRA; and
- expedite the establishment of initial collective bargaining agreements.
The bill empowers the NLRB to enforce its own orders without petitioning a court for enforcement.
Cosponsors 115
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Dec 5, 2017 to Nov 2, 2018; 32 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-NY | Adriano Espaillat | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NC | Alma S. Adams | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-PA | Brendan F. Boyle | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NH | Carol Shea-Porter | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-HI | Colleen Hanabusa | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NJ | Donald Norcross | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-MD | Elijah E. Cummings | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NJ | Frank Pallone, Jr. | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-FL | Frederica S. Wilson | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Grace F. Napolitano | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-MP | Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-RI | James R. Langevin | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-MD | Jamie Raskin | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Jared Huffman | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NY | Jerrold Nadler | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NY | Jose E. Serrano | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-MA | Katherine M. Clark | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-MN | Keith Ellison | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Linda T. Sánchez | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-IL | Luis V. Gutierrez | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-OH | Marcy Kaptur | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Mark DeSaulnier | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-WI | Mark Pocan | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Mark Takano | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-OR | Peter A. DeFazio | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CA | Ro Khanna | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-PA | Robert A. Brady | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-CT | Rosa L. DeLauro | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-OR | Suzanne Bonamici | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-OH | Tim Ryan | Original | Dec 5, 2017 |
| D-NY | Brian Higgins | Dec 6, 2017 | |
| D-HI | Tulsi Gabbard | Dec 6, 2017 | |
| D-FL | Al Lawson, Jr. | Dec 7, 2017 | |
| D-PA | Michael F. Doyle | Dec 7, 2017 | |
| D-TX | Al Green | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-CA | Alan S. Lowenthal | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-NJ | Albio Sires | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-NM | Ben Ray Luján | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-MS | Bennie G. Thompson | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-ME | Chellie Pingree | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-IL | Daniel Lipinski | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-NY | Kathleen M. Rice | Dec 13, 2017 | |
| D-CA | Brad Sherman | Dec 18, 2017 | |
| D-OH | Joyce Beatty | Jan 11, 2018 | |
| D-CO | Jared Polis | Jan 17, 2018 | |
| D-NJ | Bonnie Watson Coleman | Jan 19, 2018 | |
| D-NJ | Donald M. Payne, Jr. | Jan 19, 2018 | |
| D-MD | C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger | Jan 29, 2018 | |
| D-MI | Debbie Dingell | Jan 30, 2018 | |
| D-NJ | Bill Pascrell, Jr. | Feb 2, 2018 | |
| D-OH | Marcia L. Fudge | Feb 5, 2018 | |
| D-RI | David N. Cicilline | Feb 6, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Lucille Roybal-Allard | Feb 6, 2018 | |
| D-MA | William R. Keating | Feb 6, 2018 | |
| D-WA | Adam Smith | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-IN | André Carson | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-FL | Darren Soto | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-CT | Joe Courtney | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Maxine Waters | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-GA | Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. | Feb 8, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Pete Aguilar | Feb 13, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Thomas R. Suozzi | Feb 13, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Louise McIntosh Slaughter | Feb 15, 2018 | |
| D-MD | Anthony G. Brown | Feb 27, 2018 | |
| D-KY | John A. Yarmuth | Feb 27, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Judy Chu | Mar 5, 2018 | |
| D-WI | Ron Kind | Mar 8, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Tony Cárdenas | Mar 8, 2018 | |
| D-NC | David E. Price | Mar 13, 2018 | |
| D-FL | Alcee L. Hastings | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-IL | Bobby L. Rush | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-TX | Gene Green | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-CA | John Garamendi | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Joseph Crowley | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Julia Brownley | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Norma J. Torres | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-MN | Richard M. Nolan | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-MI | Sander M. Levin | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Yvette D. Clarke | Mar 15, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Grace Meng | Mar 19, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Sean Patrick Maloney | Mar 19, 2018 | |
| D-MN | Betty McCollum | Mar 22, 2018 | |
| D-PA | Matt Cartwright | Mar 22, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Nanette Diaz Barragán | Mar 22, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Nita M. Lowey | Mar 22, 2018 | |
| D-WA | Pramila Jayapal | Mar 22, 2018 | |
| D-NV | Jacky Rosen | Apr 2, 2018 | |
| D-MD | John P. Sarbanes | Apr 10, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Paul Tonko | Apr 10, 2018 | |
| D-NY | Hakeem S. Jeffries | Apr 13, 2018 | |
| D-TX | Joaquin Castro | Apr 23, 2018 | |
| D-IN | Peter J. Visclosky | Apr 23, 2018 | |
| D-DE | Lisa Blunt Rochester | Apr 24, 2018 | |
| D-VA | A. Donald McEachin | Apr 25, 2018 | |
| D-FL | Stephanie N. Murphy | Apr 25, 2018 | |
| D-WA | Derek Kilmer | Apr 27, 2018 | |
| D-WA | Denny Heck | May 7, 2018 | |
| D-CT | John B. Larson | May 9, 2018 | |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | May 24, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | May 24, 2018 | |
| D-TX | Beto O'Rourke | May 25, 2018 | |
| D-IL | Cheri Bustos | Jun 1, 2018 | |
| D-NM | Michelle Lujan Grisham | Jun 1, 2018 | |
| D-MO | Emanuel Cleaver | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-TX | Filemon Vela | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Jun 12, 2018 | |
| D-MA | Joseph P. Kennedy III | Jun 19, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Raul Ruiz | Jun 25, 2018 | |
| D-IA | David Loebsack | Jul 12, 2018 | |
| D-MA | Niki Tsongas | Sep 5, 2018 | |
| D-CA | Karen Bass | Sep 20, 2018 | |
| D-MO | Wm. Lacy Clay | Nov 2, 2018 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Education and Workforce Committee | Referred Dec 5, 2017 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Dec 5, 2017Introduced in House
- Dec 5, 2017Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 163, no. 198, December 5, 2017, page H9664.
Printed hearings 2
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 115-22 | GROWTH, OPPORTUNITY, AND CHANGE IN THE U.S. LABOR MARKET AND THE AMERICAN WORKFORCE: A REVIEW OF CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS, TRENDS, AND STATISTICS96 pages | Education and Workforce Committee | Jun 21, 2018 |
| Serial No. 115-42 | HEARING ON WORKER-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS: EXAMINING THE NEED TO MODERNIZE FEDERAL LABOR LAW162 pages | Education and Workforce Committee | Apr 26, 2018 |
Related bills 4
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 2143 | WAGE Act | Related bill | Nov 16, 2017 |
| S 2952 | Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 Reform Act | Related bill | May 29, 2018 |
| S 3064 | Workers' Freedom to Negotiate Act of 2018 | Related bill | Jun 13, 2018 |
| HR 6080 | Workers' Freedom to Negotiate Act of 2018 | Related bill | Oct 19, 2018 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- 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.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- WAGE Act
- Workplace Action for a Growing Economy Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Labor and Employment.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Administrative remedies
- Alternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitration
- Civil actions and liability
- Employment discrimination and employee rights
- Evidence and witnesses
- Labor and Employment
- Labor-management relations
- National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
- Wages and earnings
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Dec 5, 2017Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
