Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Wage and Hour Issues
Ranking Member Scott Introduces Bill to Crack Down on Labor Rights Violations
12.07.23 WASHINGTON - House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA-03) introduced the Workers Protecting Our Wage Earners’ Rights Act, or Workers POWER Act, alongside Representative McGarvey (D-KY-03), Congressional Labor Caucus Co-Chair, Representative Donald Norcross (NJ-01), and Representative Greg Casar (D-TX-35). The bill will equip the Department of Labor with the resources needed to tackle federal labor law violations including child labor, wage theft, a… Continue Reading
Labor Leaders Praise DOL Proposed Rule to Update Overtime Standards for Salaried Employees
11.07.23 WASHINGTON - Today, Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), Representative Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Workforce Protections Subcommittee Ranking Member Alma Adams (D-NC), Representative Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Representative Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Early Childhood Elementary and Secondary Education Subcommittee Ranking Member Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Higher Education and Workforce De… Continue Reading
Scott, Murray, DeLauro, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Stop Wage Theft and Ensure Workers Get the Pay They’ve Earned
09.12.23 WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Representative Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA-03), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee, and colleagues in both chambers reintroduced their Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act, comprehensive legislation to put hard-earned wages back in workers’ pockets and c… Continue Reading
Ranking Member Scott Statement on August Jobs Report
09.01.23 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the economy added 187,000 jobs in August as the unemployment rate rose from 3.5 percent to 3.8 percent. Notably, this rise in the unemployment rate was driven by an increase in labor force participation rather than a decline in employment. The number of jobs created in August is higher than the 182,000 jobs created each month, on average, under the Tr… Continue Reading
Ranking Member Scott Applauds President Biden’s Proposed Rule to Strengthen Overtime Pay Protections
08.30.23 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Department of Labor released a proposed rule that would raise the salary threshold for salaried workers to automatically qualify for overtime compensation. According to the Department of Labor, the proposed rule would guarantee overtime pay for most salaried workers earning less than about $55,000 per year, extending overtime protections for 3.6 million Americans. “Workers in this country des… Continue Reading
NEW: As Republicans Refuse to Take Action on Resurgence of Child Labor Violations, Ranking Member Scott Hosts Briefing with Experts
07.14.23 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) hosted a briefing with experts on the resurgence of child labor violations as well as legislative solutions to address abusive child labor practices. Members and staff heard from Sally Greenberg, CEO of the National Consumers League and Chair of the Child Labor Coalition, and Margaret Wurth, Senior Researcher with the Children’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch. Watch an excerpt of the briefing on YouTube. Eighty-five years after… Continue Reading
Labor Leaders Introduce New, Bold Legislation to End Abusive Child Labor
06.29.23 WASHINGTON - Today, Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) and Workforce Protections Subcommittee Ranking Member Alma Adams (NC-12) announced their plans to introduce new legislation—the Protecting Children Act—to finally end child labor in America. The bill provides federal worker protections agencies with the tools and resources they need to deter violations and prevent harm to children from intensive work in dangerous jobs. Recent, high-profile n… Continue Reading
Committee Leaders Ask Republicans to Put Actions Behind Their Words and Hold Hearing on Child Labor Violations
06.08.23 WASHINGTON - Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) and Workforce Protections Subcommittee Ranking Member Alma Adams (NC-12) sent a letter urging Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (NC-05) to hold a hearing on the rise of child labor violations and legislative proposals to address abusive child labor. Nearly 85 years after the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), recent, high-profile news reports have underscored that children are continuing to be illegally employed in dangerous jobs a… Continue Reading
DeLauro, Murray Introduce the Paycheck Fairness Act
03.09.23 WASHINGTON, DC - Today, U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), reintroduced the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation that would combat wage discrimination and help close the wage gap by strengthening the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and ensuring women can challenge pay discriminations and hold employers accountable. Ahead of Equal Pay Day on March 14, Representative DeLauro and Senator Murray joined advocates in underscoring the need to pass their Paycheck Fairne… Continue Reading
4 Hours of GOP Complaining, 0 Credible GOP Plans to Lower Costs for Workers and Their Families
06.14.22 Today's Committee Hearing with Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, Democrats showed up for work and highlighted how the Biden-Harris administration and House Democrats are helping workers and their families succeed in the modern economy. Meanwhile, Committee Republicans spent the majority of their time criticizing the Biden-Harris administration yet offered zero credible plans to help lower costs for workers and their families. What's more, Republicans have voted no on several Committee proposals t… Continue Reading
Scott, DeLauro, Murray Introduce Bill to Stop Wage Theft and Improve Wage Recovery
05.10.22 WASHINGTON – Today, Chair of the House Education and Labor Committee Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), Chair of the House Appropriations Committee Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), and Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act; comprehensive legislation to put hard-earned wages back in workers’ pockets and crack down on … Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Applauds Biden Administration for Protecting U.S. Workers from Wage Theft
07.29.21 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Labor Department finalized a rule to rescind the Trump-era Joint Employment Rule that would cost workers more than $1 billion every year if it remained in effect. The Fair Labor Standards Act's broad joint employment standard has long ensured that workers can hold multiple employers accountable for wage theft where the employee establishes that he or she is economically dependent on a joint employer.… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Applauds Rule Implementing $15 Minimum Wage for Federal Contractors
07.21.21 WASHINGTON – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) issued the following statement after the Department of Labor released a proposed rule implementing President Biden’s Executive Order 14026, which requires all federal contractors to pay a $15 minimum wage. “I applaud the Biden Administration for making good on its promise to increase the minimum wage for federal contractors to $15 an hour. “By both raising the minimum wage and phasing out … Continue Reading
Reps. Takano, Adams, Scott and Sen. Brown Urge Secretary Walsh to Restore Overtime Pay Protections for Millions of Workers
03.25.21 WASHINGTON - Today, Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC), Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), sent a letter to Secretary Marty Walsh urging the Department of Labor to take strong action to restore overtime pay protections for millions of workers. In the letter they state, "In 2016, the Obama Administration's DOL finalized a rule (Obama Rule) that would have increased the salary threshold to the 40th percentile of earnings of full-time, salaried workers in the … Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Statement on House Passage of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act
03.09.21 WASHINGTON - Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the House passed H.R. 842, the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act), by a vote of 225 to 206. "By passing the Protecting the Right to Organize Act today, the House has taken a critical step to secure workers' right to join a union. "Labor unions are essential to rebuilding America's middle class and improving the lives of workers and their families. Unfortunately, over the past 70 years, un… Continue Reading
Nearly 500 Small Businesses Urge Congress to Raise the Minimum Wage
02.26.21 WASHINGTON – A coalition of nearly 500 businesses – including mom-and-pop small businesses, restaurants, large retailers, and manufacturers – have signed a statement urging Congress to pass the Raise the Wage Act of 2021, which would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2025. “We can’t build a shared recovery and strong economy on a minimum wage that’s too low to live on. Workers are also customers…Raising the minimum w… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Responds to Senate Parliamentarian Ruling on Minimum Wage
02.25.21 WASHINGTON – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Senate Parliamentarian ruling on the minimum wage. “The Committee on Education and Labor included a minimum wage increase in its portion of the American Rescue Plan Act because it advances the key goals of this relief package. Raising the minimum wage would provide a direct and targeted stimulus of $333 billion to millions of workers and families that have been among the hard… Continue Reading
Chairman Scott Reacts to New CBO Minimum Wage Estimate
02.08.21 WASHINGTON -Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) released the following statement in response to a new report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on the effect of gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. "The CBO's report strengthens the case for gradually raising the minimum wage through the COVID-19 rescue package. This nonpartisan report shows that increasing the minimum wage will act as a direct and targeted stimulus for struggling workers and their families. A… Continue Reading
Labor Leaders Reintroduce Paycheck Fairness Act
01.28.21 WASHINGTON - Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott, Chair of the House Committee on Education and Labor, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), incoming Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, led every Democrat in Congress in reintroducing the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation that would strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963, help eliminate the gender wage gap, and guarantee that women can c… Continue Reading
Top Democrats Introduce Bill Raising Minimum Wage to $15 by 2025
01.26.21 WASHINGTON - Today, House Committee on Education and Labor Chair Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) joined incoming Senate Budget Committee Chair Bernie Sanders (I-VT), incoming Senate HELP Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA), Senate), Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), and Rep. Stephanie Murphy (FL-07) to introduce legislation gradually raising the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2025. The Raise the Wage Act of 2021 (H.R. 603) would gradually increase the federal minim… Continue Reading