Bill Sponsor
Senate Bill 1000
115th Congress(2017-2018)
Protecting America's Workers Act
Introduced
Introduced
Introduced in Senate on May 1, 2017
Overview
Text
Sponsor
Introduced
May 1, 2017
Latest Action
May 1, 2017
Origin Chamber
Senate
Type
Bill
Bill
The primary form of legislative measure used to propose law. Depending on the chamber of origin, bills begin with a designation of either H.R. or S. Joint resolution is another form of legislative measure used to propose law.
Bill Number
1000
Congress
115
Policy Area
Labor and Employment
Labor and Employment
Primary focus of measure is matters affecting hiring and composition of the workforce, wages and benefits, labor-management relations; occupational safety, personnel management, unemployment compensation. Measures concerning public-sector employment may fall under Government Operations and Politics policy area.
Sponsorship by Party
Democrat
Minnesota
Democrat
Massachusetts
Democrat
Massachusetts
Democrat
Washington
Senate Votes (0)
House Votes (0)
No Senate votes have been held for this bill.
Summary

Protecting America's Workers Act

This bill amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) to increase the scope of the Act by applying its coverage to federal, state, and local government employees. However, the bill makes OSHA inapplicable to working conditions covered by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.

The bill revises requirements governing worker protection, including by:

  • increasing protections for whistle-blowers as well as employees participating in or aiding inspections;
  • directing employers to furnish a hazard-free place of employment to all individuals, not just employees;
  • requiring the posting of employee rights concerning protection from retaliation;
  • requiring site logs of employees' work-related injuries and illnesses, including those of employees of other employers and contractors;
  • directing employers to report work-related deaths or hospitalizations;
  • prohibiting employers from discouraging accurate record keeping and reporting of work-related injuries or illnesses;
  • requiring the Department of Labor to investigate an incident in the workplace that results in the death of an employee or one that results in the hospitalization of two or more employees;
  • establishing rights for victims, or representatives of victims, with respect to inspections or investigations of work-related bodily injuries or deaths;
  • setting the permitted period for employers to correct serious, willful, or repeated violations while citations for the violations are being contested;
  • increasing civil and criminal penalties for certain violations;
  • expanding enforcement requirements relating to state occupational safety and health plans, including by allowing Labor concurrent enforcement authority in states where the state plans fail to meet minimum requirements; and
  • expanding requirements for workplace health hazard evaluations by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Text (1)
Actions (2)
05/01/2017
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
05/01/2017
Introduced in Senate
Public Record
Record Updated
Jan 11, 2023 1:36:32 PM