WASHINGTON – Yesterday, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ-07) joined a bipartisan group of over 200 House colleagues in reintroducing the Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. 

“The right to organize is fundamental to ensuring fair compensation, safe working conditions, and overall quality of life for workers. Big corporations and the billionaire class continue to reap the rewards of a growing economy while hardworking families and middle-class Americans are left behind. Wage growth has been stagnant for years, compared to sky-high profits for the wealthy and an ever-greater cost of living,” said Rep Grijalva. “Meanwhile, labor rights are under attack from President Trump, who has fired National Labor Relations Board member Gwynne Wilcox and rendered the agency powerless to fulfill its duty to enforce our bedrock labor laws. Swiftly passing the PRO Act is an important first step towards ensuring good-paying jobs and benefits for the working class who have built this country.” 

The PRO Act protects the basic right to join a union by: 

• Holding employers accountable for violating workers’ rights by authorizing meaningful penalties, facilitating initial collective bargaining agreements, and closing loopholes that allow employers to misclassify their employees as supervisors and independent contractors. 
• Empowering workers to exercise their right to organize by strengthening support for workers who suffer retaliation for exercising their rights, protecting workers’ right to support secondary boycotts, ensuring workers’ unions can collect “fair share” fees, and authorizing a private right of action for violation of workers’ rights. 
• Securing free, fair, and safe union elections by preventing employers from interfering in union elections, prohibiting captive audience meetings, and requiring employers to be transparent with their workers. 

The House bill was introduced by the Committee on Education and Workforce Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA-03), House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY-08), and Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01). The Senate companion was introduced by the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-VT). 

For the full bill text of the PRO Act, click here. 

A section-by-section summary of the PRO Act can be found here.