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Democrats’ Anti-Worker Provisions Hidden in H.R. 2

H.R. 2 includes harmful, anti-worker provisions which were added to the bill in a last-minute amendment offered by House Democrats at the behest of their Big Labor allies.
 
Vastly expands Davis-Bacon wage requirements.
This expansion forces contractors to pay “prevailing” wages, which are calculated by unscientific government surveys that tilt the scale in favor of union wages. This mandate adds red tape, burdens employers, and inflates the cost of taxpayer-funded construction projects.
 
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Davis-Bacon Act requirements will cost taxpayers an additional $8.6 billion annually.
 
Compels anti-competitive project labor agreements.
H.R. 2 requires federal contractors to enter into anti-competitive, project labor agreements (PLAs) as a condition of being awarded certain construction contracts.
 
PLAs force contractors to use the union hiring hall to obtain workers and to obey the unions’ restrictive and inefficient work rules and job classifications. These requirements deny opportunity to more than eight out of 10 U.S. private construction workers who do not wish to belong to a union.
 
Revives Obama-era blacklisting rule.
This flawed and unnecessary Obama-era rule will add another layer of unnecessary bureaucracy into a federal procurement system already plagued by delays and inefficiencies.
 
Under Republican leadership, Congress repealed this duplicative rule because there are processes already in place to deny federal contracts to bad actors who violate basic worker requirements.
 
Makes it easier for unions to blackmail and intimidate workers.
So-called “neutrality” provisions are a form of blackmail in which the employer agrees to support the union (or remain silent) during a union organizing drive in exchange for a union promise that it will not picket the business.
 
This harmful provision makes it easier for House Democrats’ Big Labor allies to intimidate employers and employees in order to force workers to pay union dues and fees, regardless of whether they wish to be represented by a union at all.
 
Limits workers’ entrepreneurial opportunity.
By improperly reclassifying independent contractors as employees, H.R. 2 advances the Democrats' socialist scheme to subject more workers to unionization. Once again, Democrats prove they are more concerned about the wishes of union bosses than American workers.
 
Opens another door for trial lawyers to sue businesses.
Sub-contracting allows for a cost-effective and flexible method of employment that allows employees to negotiate directly with the business that controls their immediate terms and conditions of employment.
 
In H.R. 2, House Democrats want to replace this clear and concise standard with a broad, vague definition of joint employment that makes third-party businesses liable for employees they do not directly control – all to benefit labor unions and trial lawyers. Prohibiting contractors from hiring employees through a temporary staffing agency is a first step toward eliminating this cost-effective and flexible method of employment. 
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