PRINTER'S NO. 388
No. 353 Session of 1989
INTRODUCED BY ACOSTA, DeWEESE, BELFANTI, PISTELLA, KUKOVICH,
KOSINSKI, ROBINSON, TRELLO, BILLOW, DALEY, CORRIGAN, BELARDI,
HOWLETT, FREEMAN AND LEVDANSKY, FEBRUARY 8, 1989
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LABOR RELATIONS, FEBRUARY 8, 1989
AN ACT
1 Providing for a declaration of emergency during a lockout, for
2 emergency powers of the Governor, and for the protection of
3 workers' rights.
4 The General Assembly finds that whenever, upon expiration of
5 a labor-management contract, a union is willing to work but the
6 corporation refuses to continue to give employment under terms
7 of an existing contract, the corporation has created a lockout
8 which is detrimental to the welfare of its employees and to the
9 economic well-being of this Commonwealth. The General Assembly
10 further finds that the needs of workers and their families for
11 food, clothing, housing, utilities, transportation, medical
12 care, education and other consumer necessities, and for credit
13 are endangered whenever workers are locked out of their jobs.
14 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
15 hereby enacts as follows:
16 Section 1. Short title.
17 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Consumers'
18 Lockout Protection Act.
1 Section 2. Definitions.
2 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
3 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
4 context clearly indicates otherwise:
5 "Collective bargaining." Negotiations between a union and a
6 corporation or their respective representatives concerning the
7 modification or extension of an existing labor-management
8 contract.
9 "Corporation." Any entity which is chartered by the
10 Commonwealth to conduct business in this State.
11 "Emergency." A condition which results from the refusal of a
12 corporation to continue operations under an existing labor-
13 management contract.
14 "Union." Any organization recognized by a corporation as
15 duly authorized under provisions of State or Federal labor
16 relations acts to represent employees of the corporation in
17 collective bargaining negotiations under a labor-management
18 contract.
19 Section 3. Declaration of emergency.
20 (a) Request.--Any union engaged in collective bargaining
21 negotiations shall have the right to request the Governor to
22 declare an emergency whenever any corporation refuses to
23 continue operations under an existing labor-management contract.
24 (b) Action by Governor.--Within 24 hours of receipt of a
25 request as specified in subsection (a), the Governor shall
26 request the corporation to voluntarily continue or resume
27 operations under existing labor-management contracts.
28 (c) Time of declaration.--Within 24 hours following the
29 request of the Governor specified in subsection (b), in the
30 event a corporation refuses to agree to continue or resume
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1 operations under existing contracts, the Governor shall
2 immediately declare a state of emergency to exist for the
3 workers of said corporation.
4 Section 4. Emergency powers of the Governor.
5 Upon the declaration of an emergency, the Governor shall have
6 the power to:
7 (1) Invoke the protection of Article IV-C of the act of
8 December 3, 1959 (P.L.1688, No.621), known as the Housing
9 Finance Agency Law, to make any locked-out employee
10 immediately eligible for financial assistance to avoid
11 mortgage delinquency.
12 (2) Impose a moratorium, for the protection of any
13 locked-out employee and for the duration of the lockout, on
14 bank or finance company personal loan payments, car payments,
15 and other monthly installment payments on any article of
16 personal property which has been financed.
17 (3) Order immediate award of weekly unemployment
18 compensation payments without a waiting period to locked-out
19 employees and provide that such unemployment compensation
20 payments continue for the duration of the lockout.
21 (4) Prevent lapse for nonpayment of any existing health
22 care plan of any locked-out employee for the duration of the
23 lockout.
24 (5) Prohibit any agency or corporation in any credit
25 report from downgrading the creditworthiness of any locked-
26 out employee.
27 (6) Prohibit any utility from shutting off service of
28 any locked-out employee for nonpayment of bills for the
29 duration of the lockout.
30 Section 5. Protection of workers' rights.
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1 Nothing in this act shall prevent workers or their union from
2 exercising their rights to collective bargaining and to strike
3 in the manner provided by law.
4 Section 6. Effective date.
5 This act shall take effect immediately.
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