Legislation provides clarity for local businesses on what it means to be a “joint employer”
Washington, D.C., 2017-Aug-01 — /Travel PR News/ — The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) today ( July 27, 2017) applauded the introduction of the “Save Local Business Act,” which will provide much needed clarity to America’s small businesses and entrepreneurs on what it means to be a “joint employer.”
Following a recent hearing on the harms of the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) Browning-Ferris Industries of California ruling that significantly expanded the joint employer definition, Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, along with Representatives Bradley Byrne (R-AL), Tim Walberg (R-MI), Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Lou Correa (D-CA), introduced the bipartisan legislation, which will address joint employer liability under both the National Labor Relations Act and Fair Labor Standards Act. The legislation reverts back to the previous definition of joint employment where an employer may be considered a joint employer of a worker only if it “directly, actually, and immediately” exercises significant control over the primary elements of employment, such as hiring, firing, determining pay, or supervising employees on a routine basis. This commonsense solution addresses uncertainty experienced by local businesses under the expanded joint employer standard.
“On behalf of the small business owners and entrepreneurs who represent three out of every five lodging businesses across the United States, we applaud the bipartisan leadership of Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, and Representatives Bradley Byrne, Tim Walberg, Henry Cuellar and Lou Correa for introducing this targeted and focused legislative fix that will foster and incentivize job growth, free enterprise, and certainty in the workplace,” said Brian Crawford, Vice President of Government & Political Affairs for AHLA. “This is a significant step forward in helping ensure that employers have clarity and certainty as to who they employ and for whom they are liable under the law, in order spur growth and create more career opportunities in the hotel industry.”
The American Hotel & Lodging Association is a member of the Coalition to Save Local Businesses, which represents thousands of local businesses and millions of American jobs through its membership and partner organizations. The coalition’s goal has been to inform Members of Congress and key stakeholders about the negative consequences by the NLRB’s decision to expand the definition of who can be held as a joint employer. The coalition has been advocating in Congress to support legislation that would permanently recognize the long-standing and widely accepted definition of joint employer. To learn more about the coalition visit the website, www.SaveLocalBusinesses.com.
About the American Hotel and Lodging Association
Serving the hospitality industry for more than a century, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) is the sole national association representing all segments of the 8 million jobs the U.S. lodging industry supports, including hotel owners, REITs, chains, franchisees, management companies, independent properties, bed and breakfasts, state hotel associations, and industry suppliers. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., AHLA focuses on strategic advocacy, communications support, and educational resources for an industry that advances long-term career opportunities for employees, invests in local communities across the country and hosts more than one billion guests’ stays in American hotels every year. AHLA proudly represents a dynamic hotel industry of more than 54,000 properties that supports $1.1 trillion in U.S. sales and generates nearly $170 billion in taxes to local, state and federal governments. Learn more at www.AHLA.com.
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Source: AHLA