Representative Malinowski Votes To Strengthen Worker Protections

Press Release

Today, Representative Malinowski voted to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a bipartisan bill that strengthens workers' rights to negotiate for living wages, better benefits, and safer working conditions. The legislation was co-sponsored by all 12 members of the New Jersey congressional delegation.

Workers' wages have been stagnant for years and research consistently shows that workers who have the right to collectively bargain and advocate for themselves earn higher pay, have safer workplaces, and are more likely to have employer-sponsored health care and retirement plans.

Among other provisions, the PRO Act:

Introduces meaningful, enforceable penalties for companies and executives that violate workers' rights;
Protects and expands workers' power to stand together and negotiate for bigger paychecks, better benefits, and safer working conditions, and closes loopholes that corporations use to exploit workers; and
Strengthens workers' access to fair union elections and requires corporations to respect the results.
There are some key distinctions between the PRO Act and various efforts at the state level to re-classify certain workers as "employees." An amendment, backed by Representative Malinowski, explicitly clarifies that the only effect of the independent contractor provision in the PRO Act is to strengthen collective bargaining rights, and that it does not preempt any state laws governing the wages, work hours, workers' compensation, or unemployment insurance of employees.

"Everyone in New Jersey deserves an opportunity to live out the American dream: to own a home, have affordable healthcare, and send their kids to college," said Congressman Malinowski. "This bill levels the playing field for American workers and is a step forward in creating an economy where everyone can succeed."

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