Bill to Preempt Local, Democratic Control of Employment Standards (AB 748) to Receive Public Hearing Wednesday, February 7 in the Assembly.
At the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, we’ve been alerting you to Senate Bill 634 / Assembly Bill 748, co-authored by Sen. Kapenga (R- Delafield) & Rep. Hutton (R-Brookfield), a dangerous attack on workers, our rights, and our local democratic processes. Many of you have written letters and attended the public hearing in the Senate in January.
On Wednesday, the Assembly Committee on Local Government will hear public testimony on AB 748 at 1:00 p.m. at the State Capitol. Come and testify to stand up for living wages, predictable scheduling, and local control.
Assembly Committee on Local Government
Public Hearing on AB 748
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
1 p.m.
400 Northeast, State Capitol
SB 634 & AB 748, if passed, would make sweeping changes to how working people can increase fairness and justice within work places and increase safety and confidence in services and goods provided to consumers at the local level.
The full summary of the bill is as follows:
- This bill not only prohibits local governments from utilizing labor peace agreements, but sets a criminal penalty if a municipality passes an ordinance requiring a labor peace agreement.
- This bill would end an opportunity that allows local governments to set a minimum wage for employees who are contracted to perform work for the local government.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from enforcing license regulations that are more strict than the state standards for that license.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from enacting or enforcing employment discrimination standards.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from forcing contractors to agree to a mandatory labor peace agreement in order to receive a license or permit.
- The bill would create a statewide standard for employee scheduling of hours and overtime regulations, and would prohibit local governments from passing fair scheduling ordinances.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from setting a level of employment benefits for employers, for example mandating certain time off or retirement benefits.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from passing an ordinance to prohibit employers from asking about salary history.
- This bill would prohibit local governments from creating agencies to handle wage claims, or complaints about wage theft.
As you can see, Assembly Bill 748 will preempt many ways in which local governments in Wisconsin could enhance employment standards in their own communities, and would preempt new ideas to enhance workplace standards, even those that have been tried and tested across the Country, from going forward in our own communities.
This bill is designed to hinder the progress of working people. All around the country cities have been passing local living wage ordinances and fair scheduling laws in order to raise wages and jobs standards. In the past two decades, at least 140 communities in the U.S. have passed local living wage ordinances.
Family-friendly policies lets workers plan their workweek and child care responsibilities ahead of time. Too many jobs are moving towards on-demand or gig-style scheduling which allows employers to tell workers to stay home or come into work at the last minute without predictability.
Let’s not take away the freedom of local communities to enhance employment standards for workers in our changing economy. Contact lawmakers in opposition of Assembly Bill 748 today.
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