Issue Position: Fighting for Workers
Issue Position
A strong economic foundation for our workers requires fair and secure workplaces. Congressman Larsen has a long history of fighting for workers and their families in support of jobs, safety, higher wages and benefits.
Jobs
* FY 17 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA):
o Commissaries: Supported an amendment to prevent privatization and protect commissary workers and benefits for servicemembers.
o Preventing outsourcing: Sponsored amendment requiring services to adopt checklist of relevant acquisition policy prior to entering into a contract for services.
o Worker protections: Voted against amendment to exempt Department of Defense contractors from Executive Order on worker protections.
o Cap on service contracting: Cosponsored amendment to extend the cap on service contracts by one year.
o Aerospace manufacturing jobs: Supported $1.54 B additional funding for 14 additional F/A-18 Super Hornets.
* Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization: Support striking ATC privatization and make targeted reforms to FAA procurement and personnel.
* Surface Reauthorization (FAST Act):
o Highway Trust Fund Expiration: Passed a long-term transportation bill, preventing the Highway Trust Fund from expiring. Cosponsoring a bill to raise the gas tax by 15 cents.
o Amtrak Reauthorization: Voted no on McClintock amendment (amendment failed). Opposed zeroing out passenger rail funding.
* Oppose Norwegian Air International (NAI) application for foreign carrier service:
* Export-Import Bank:
o Supported reauthorizing it before the June 30th deadline.
o Signed a petition to force a vote on a reauthorization bill.
o Supported reauthorizing the Bank in the transportation bill.
* Protect U.S. cargo preference in food aid: Oppose the President's proposal to reform food aid away from commodity distribution via U.S. ships to cash payments.
National Labor Relations Board
* Votes:
o H.Res. 152: Voted to uphold the power of the NLRB to streamline the union organizing process in March 2015.
o S.J. Res. 8: Voted against this bill that would have hurt the NLRB's decision making abilities.
o H.R. 1120 (2013): Voted against this bill that would prohibit the NLRB from taking any action that requires a quorum of members.
o H.R. 2587 (2011): Voted against this bill that limits the NLRB enforcement powers. This bill would curb the labor board's legal authority by prohibiting it from ordering a company to relocate its workers.
* Letters:
o FY17 Request: Signed onto a letter to fund the NLRB at $275 million.
Right to Organize/ Protecting Unions
* National Defense Authorization Act:
o FY 17
* Project Labor Agreements: Voted against amendment to prohibit PLAs.
* Postings: Voted against amendment that would prohibit posting materials to solicit union membership.
o FY 16
* Cosponsored an amendment that removed a provision that unfairly and inaccurately singled out DoD civilians and could have deprived them of employee protections.
* Stood with labor in support of the current prohibition on the flawed OMB Circular A-76 process, which had previously led to outsourcing of DoD civilian jobs.
* Supported extending the cap on service contracting costs to prevent the DoD from shifting work from a capped civilian workforce to an uncapped contractor workforce.
* Employee Free Choice Act: Supported when first introduced in 2003 to the time it passed the House in 2007.
* WAGE Act: Support: To strengthen protections for organizing and collective bargaining.
* Workplace Democracy Act: Support bill making it easier for workers to join a union. Allows the National Labor Relations Board to certify a union if a simple majority of eligible workers sign valid authorization cards.
* Support repeal of the Cadillac Tax: Supported the Omnibus Appropriations bill to delay the tax.
* Surface Reauthorization: Voted against an amendment requesting a GAO study on the economic impact of contract negotiations at ports on the west coast to continue to support unions' ability to negotiate contracts.
* Oppose NAI application for foreign carrier service after their attempts to avoid labor and tax laws in violation of the EU-US aviation agreement to uphold labor laws.
Davis Bacon/Wages
* Travel pay: Worked to prevent reduction in travel expenses for DOD civilians. Cosponsored H.R. 1193 to rescind and prevent cuts to per diem rates. Cosponsored amendment to FY 17 and FY 16 NDAA to do the same. Urged Appropriations Committee to stop these cuts.
* Davis Bacon: Voted against amendment to the FY 16 spending bill for military construction and veterans to prohibit use of Davis Bacon rates.
* Pay Stub Disclosure Act: Support bill to require employers to provide pay stubs to stop wage theft.
* FAA Reauthorization: Opposed an attempt to raise the Davis Bacon threshold for any airport development project to $150,000.
* Surface Reauthorization: Continue prevailing wage standards. Collectively, Davis-Bacon and Project Labor Agreements protect workers and communities from the use of underpaid labor while ensuring projects are performed safely, on time and on budget by qualified and trained personnel. Consistently voted against these amendments in appropriations bills.
* Minimum Wage:
o Support the Raise Up Washington state initiative (measure 1433) to give paid sick leave and raise the minimum wage to $13.50 per hour.
o Support the Raise the Wage Act: Continue prevailing wage standards. Raise the federal minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2020.
* Support the Paycheck Fairness Act.
Hours
* FAA Reauthorization:
o Flight attendants: Support requiring a minimum of 10-hour rest periods for flight attendants, as well as fatigue risk management plans.
o Truck Drivers: Support striking the preemption of state meal and rest break laws for truck drivers.
* Schedules that Work Act: Support allowing low-wage workers to request for schedule flexibility without retaliation.
Health/Safety
* FAA Reauthorization:
o Truck Drivers: Support striking the preemption of state meal and rest break laws for truck drivers.
o Support protecting ticket and gate agents: Provide airline ticket and gate agents with the same legal protections from assaults as flight attendants and flight crews.
* Paid Sick Leave:
o Support the Raise Up Washington state initiative (measure 1433) to give paid sick leave and raise the minimum wage to $13.50 per hour.
o Cosponsor of the Healthy Families Act that would require workers to get up to seven days of paid sick days to care for themselves or a family member or loved one.
o Cosponsor of the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act (HR 1439) to ensure that workers can take paid family and medical leave when they need it.
o Cosponsor of the Schedules that Work Act (HR 3071) to provide flexible, predictable and stable work schedules.
o Cosponsor the Strong Start Act (HR 2411) to give workers access to high-quality early-learning opportunities, and more affordable, stable child care.
* ACA:
o Supported the Affordable Care Act, which decreased the number of uninsured from 16 percent in our state to 6 percent.
o Continue to vote against repeal of ACA.
* Surface Reauthorization:
o Clean Ports: Support allowing ports to require stronger clean air standards for trucks servicing them.
o Motorcoach Insurance Requirements: Support FMCSA's efforts to increase the minimum level of financial responsibility to provide coverage for public liability and property damage.
o Oppose truck size increases: do not allow larger trucks on the road. Voted against allowing larger trucks on the road during the DRIVE Act debate. The amendment failed.
* Support DOL's silica rule: to protect workers by limiting exposure to harmful silica dust.
FAA Reauthorization
* Support striking ATC privatization and make targeted reforms to FAA procurement and personnel.
* Davis Bacon: Opposed an amendment to raise Davis Bacon threshold for any airport development project to $150,000.
* Flight attendants: Support requiring a minimum of 10-hour rest periods for flight attendants, as well as fatigue risk management plans.
* Truck Drivers: Support striking preemption of state meal and rest break laws for truck drivers.
* Ticket and Gate Agents: Support providing airline ticket and gate agents with the same legal protections from assaults as flight attendants and flight crews.
Surface Reauthorization
* Voted against an amendment requesting a GAO study on the economic impact of contract negotiations at ports on the west coast to continue to support unions' ability to negotiate contracts.
* Highway Trust Fund Expiration: Cosponsored the Grow America Act and legislation to raise the gas tax by 15 cents.
* Amtrak Reauthorization: Voted no on McClintock amendment (amendment failed). Opposed zeroing out passenger rail funding.
* Prevailing Wage: Support continuing prevailing wage standards. Collectively, Davis-Bacon and Project Labor Agreements protect workers and communities from the use of underpaid labor while ensuring projects are performed safely, on time and on budget by qualified and trained personnel.
* Clean Ports: Support allowing ports to require stronger clean air standards for trucks servicing them.
* Motorcoach Insurance Requirements: Supported TTD to advance FMCSA's efforts to increase the minimum level of financial responsibility to provide coverage for public liability and property damage.
* Truck size increases: Voted against an amendment to the surface transportation bill that would have allowed larger trucks on the road.
NDAA
* Commissaries: Supported an amendment to prevent privatization and protect commissary workers and benefits for servicemembers.
* Preventing outsourcing: Cosponsored amendment to extend the cap on service contracts by one year. Sponsored amendment requiring services to adopt checklist of relevant acquisition policy prior to entering into a contract for services.
* Worker protections: Voted against amendment to exempt Department of Defense contractors from Executive Order on worker protections.
* Cosponsored amendment to extend the cap on service contracts by one year.
* Aerospace manufacturing jobs: Supported $1.54 B additional funding for 14 additional F/A-18 Super Hornets.
* Travel pay: Cosponsored H.R. 1193 to rescind and prevent cuts to per diem rates for DOD civilians. Cosponsored amendment to FY 17 and FY 16 NDAA to do the same.
* Project Labor Agreements: Opposed amendment to prohibit PLAs.
* Postings: Opposed amendment to prohibit posting materials to solicit union membership.
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