S. 2143 115th Congress Senate

WAGE Act

Official title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to strengthen protections for employees wishing to advocate for improved wages, hours, or other terms or condi… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: A bill to amend the National Labor Relations Act to strengthen protections for employees wishing to advocate for improved wages, hours, or other terms or conditions of employment, to expand coverage under such Act, to provide a process for achieving initial collective bargaining agreements, and to provide for stronger remedies for interference with these rights, and for other purposes.

Introduced: November 16, 2017 Introduced by: Patty Murray Democratic · Washington See on congress.gov

Labor and Employment Administrative law and regulatory proceduresAdministrative remediesAlternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitrationCivil actions and liability

More subjectsShow fewer subjects

Employment discrimination and employee rightsEvidence and witnessesLabor-management relationsNational Labor Relations Board (NLRB)Wages and earnings

Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps

Introduced

In committee

Reported out

Passed House

Passed Senate

To President

Became law

Nov 16, 2017

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Nov 16, 2017

Introduced in Senate

Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

Latest action November 16, 2017

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Workplace Action for a Growing Economy Act or the WAGE Act

This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to

require the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to award back pay and additional damages to any employee whose rights under the NLRA have been violated by an employer;
impose penalties upon an employer for failing to post a notice of the rights of their employees under the NLRA;
impose penalties upon an employer whose violations of the NLRA result in the discharge of an employee or other serious economic harm to the employee;
provide civil remedies, including restraining orders, and a private right of action for violations of the NLRA;
require the NLRB to issue an order requiring collective bargaining when a majority of valid ballots have been cast in favor of union representation;
prevent the classification of employees as supervisors for the purpose of denying such employees the protections of the NLRA; and
expedite the establishment of initial collection bargaining agreements.

The bill empowers the NLRB to enforce its own orders without petitioning a court for enforcement.

Related & companion bills 3