Bill That Would Remove NLRB's Authority to Order Employers to Relocate or Close Their Facilities is Introduced
UPDATE: On July 21, 2011, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce approved this bill by a vote of 23-16 along party lines.
A bill that would prevent the National Labor Relations Board from ordering an employer to close, relocate, or transfer its operations under any circumstances is being fast-tracked in the House of Representatives. The Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act (H.R. 2587), introduced on July 19 by Rep. Tim Scott (R-SC) and co-sponsored by Reps. John Kline (R-MN), Phil Roe (R-TN), Joe Wilson (R-SC), and Trey Gowdy (R-SC), is scheduled for markup by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce on Thursday, July 21, 2011.
In a Committee press release, Scott said: “We must encourage companies to create jobs at home here in America and not overseas, and my legislation will remove the ability of an unelected government board to stand in the way of American job creation.”
Specifically, this bill would add the following to Section 10(c) of the National Labor Relations Act:
Provided further, That the Board shall have no power to order an employer (or seek an order against an employer) to restore or reinstate any work, product, production line, or equipment, to rescind any relocation, transfer, subcontracting, outsourcing, or other change regarding the location, entity, or persons who shall be engaged in production or other business operations, or to require any employer to make an initial or additional investment at a particular plant, facility, or location.
If enacted, the provisions of this bill would apply to any pending complaint before the Board.
According to Committee Chairman Kline, “No government board should have the authority to tell a private employer where it can run a business,” adding “That is why I’m proud to support Representative Scott’s commonsense proposal to fix a flaw in federal labor policy, and remove an unnecessary obstacle to American job creation.”
As expected, Ranking Minority Committee Member George Miller (D-CA) expressed disappointment with the scheduled bill markup, and urged Kline to “cancel Thursday’s committee vote and instead hold a hearing on the bill to examine its full range of consequences.”
Markup of the legislation is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Thursday.
