PRINTER'S NO. 3184
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1750
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY METCALFE, RAPP, F. KELLER, BLOOM, KNOWLES,
KAUFFMAN, WARD, CUTLER, McGINNIS, LAWRENCE, TALLMAN, GROVE,
ZIMMERMAN, SAYLOR, MOUL, TOPPER, PHILLIPS-HILL, EVERETT,
MACKENZIE AND HICKERNELL, APRIL 13, 2016
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, APRIL 13, 2016
AN ACT
Providing that employment shall not be conditional upon
membership or nonmembership in, nor upon the payment or
nonpayment of money to, a labor organization; and providing
for bargaining, penalties and remedies.
The General Assembly finds that to require a person to be a
member of, or not to be a member of, a private organization as a
compulsory condition of work or employment is not in accord with
fundamental principles of individual liberty and freedom of
choice. It is therefore declared to be the public policy of this
Commonwealth that membership or nonmembership in a labor union
should not be made a condition of the opportunity to work or to
be or remain in the employment of any employer; that employees
should have the right to form, join, continue membership in or
assist labor organizations and should equally have the right to
refrain from forming, joining, continuing membership in or
assisting labor organizations; and that any agreement, express
or implied, between employers and labor organizations, or any
practice whatsoever, which directly or indirectly makes
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membership or nonmembership in a labor organization, or support
or nonsupport of a labor organization, a condition of employment
or continued employment is a violation of individual liberty and
freedom and is against the public policy of this Commonwealth.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Freedom of
Employment Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Labor organization." An organization or agency or employee
representation committee, plan or arrangement in which employees
participate and which exists for the purpose of dealing with
employers concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of
pay, hours of employment or conditions of work.
"Person." An individual or a corporation, association,
company, firm or labor organization.
Section 3. Prohibited conditions of employment.
(a) Membership.--No person may be required to become or
remain a member of a labor organization as a condition of
employment or continuation of employment.
(b) Abstention from membership.--No person may be required
to abstain or refrain from membership in a labor organization as
a condition of employment or continuation of employment.
(c) Dues, fees and charges.--No person may be required to
pay or refrain from paying any dues, fees or other charges of
any kind to a labor organization as a condition of employment or
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continuation of employment.
Section 4. Penalty.
A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree, and
shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more
than $1,000 or to imprisonment for not more than six months, or
both, with each day of violation constituting a separate
offense, if the person does any of the following:
(1) Directly or indirectly places upon any other person
any requirement or compulsion prohibited by this act.
(2) Makes any agreement, written or oral, express or
implied, to violate paragraph (1).
(3) Engages in any lockout, layoff, strike, work
stoppage, slowdown, picketing, boycott or other action or
conduct that has the purpose or effect of imposing upon any
person, directly or indirectly, any requirement or compulsion
prohibited by this act.
Section 5. Relief.
Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, a person
injured or threatened with injury by any action or conduct
prohibited by this act shall be entitled to injunctive relief
and to damages for any injuries sustained.
Section 6. Repeals.
All acts and parts of acts are repealed insofar as they are
inconsistent with this act.
Section 7. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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