WASHINGTON, DC—Today, Congressman Donald Norcross (NJ-01) announced that he has filed a discharge petition for the Faster Labor Contracts Act. The bill will speed up the process of finalizing a first contract between a newly certified union and the employer.  

“The right of workers to form a union and collectively bargain is crucial to improving wages, hours, working conditions, and so much more. I know because I’ve lived it,” said Congressman Donald Norcross, Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Labor Caucus. “Right now, employers can delay negotiations on first contracts for years. The Faster Labor Contracts Act will force employers to act in good faith and come to the negotiating table quickly. This is a bill that’s supported by members from both parties on the left, right, and center. Since Speaker Johnson won’t bring this bipartisan bill to the floor for a vote, we’re left with no choice but to file a discharge petition.”

“In the wealthiest country in the world, if you work hard and play by the rules, you should have the opportunity to live the good life. No one has done more to defend this American dream than our nation's unions and organized labor," said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. "At a time when the right to organize is under assault, it is unacceptable that when hardworking Americans come together to form a workplace union, employers can stifle that progress by refusing to bargain. The discharge petition on the Faster Labor Contracts Act, which will soon get the 218 signatures necessary to force a vote on the Floor of the House of Representatives, strengthens worker protections and compels employers to come to the table. I thank Congressman Norcross for his leadership and for standing up for working families across the country.”

"For many workers, the hard part doesn’t end when they vote to form a union— it begins there.  Reaching a first contract can take months, even years.  In some cases, it never happens at all.  Workers sit through endless delays, shifting proposals, and stalled negotiations, all while trying to balance their jobs, their families, and their livelihoods.  When workers choose to organize, they are choosing a voice—but without a first contract, that voice can be effectively silenced.” said Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, House Committee on Education and Workforce. “Dragging out fair negotiations is a second chance for corporations to break up a union.  The Faster Labor Contracts Act brings accountability to this process.  It sets reasonable timelines and ensures that both sides engage in serious, good-faith negotiations.  It helps prevent delay tactics and keeps the focus where it belongs—on reaching an agreement that works for everyone. Ensuring workers can quickly and efficiently reach a first contract is also one of the many important provisions of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (PRO Act).  I support the Faster Labor Contracts Act because it similarly advances the rights of working people, and I thank Mr. Norcross for his leadership on this issue.”

“In America today, workers are forced to wait 458 days on average before obtaining a first union contract. This is unfair, it’s un-American, and it must be fixed,” Teamsters General President Sean M. O'Brien said. “This bill needs to move, and it needs to move fast, because working people in this country have been waiting long enough.”

According to Bloomberg Law, it takes an average of 458 days for unions and employers to agree on a first contract. This bipartisan legislation will ensure that when workers vote to form a union, employers are not allowed to drag out negotiations on first contracts.

The Faster Labor Contracts Act would amend Section 8(d) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), to require that:

• Employers begin negotiating with a newly certified union within 10 days of receiving a written request. 
• If no agreement is reached after 90 days of negotiation, either party can request mediation from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). 
• If mediation fails after 30 days, or additional periods agreed upon by both parties, the dispute will be referred to a binding 3-person arbitration panel to secure an initial contract.  
• That initial contract is binding for 2 years unless both parties agree to amend it.

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced this bill in the Senate.

Read the full text of the legislation here.

Read the one-pager here.

Donald Norcross (D-NJ-01) and Pete Stauber (R-MN-08) were joined by the following members in introducing the Faster Labor Contracts Act: Representatives Don Bacon (R-NE-02), Rob Bresnahan (R-PA-08), Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13), Angie Craig (D-MN-02), Chris Deluzio (D-PA-17), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01), Andrew Garbarino (R-NY-02), Jared Golden (D-ME-02), Tim Kennedy (D-NY-26), Nick LaLota (R-NY-01), Rick Larsen (D-WA-02), Mike Lawler (R-NY-17), Stephen Lynch (D-MA-08), Seth Magaziner (D-RI-02), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11), Morgan McGarvey (D-KY-03), Riley Moore (R-WV-02), Emily Randall (D-WA-06), Josh Riley (D-NY-19), Michael Rulli (R-OH-06), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA-05), Chris Smith (R-NJ-04), Haley Stevens (D-MI-11), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ-02).

The bill is endorsed by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), American Compass, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division–International Brotherhood of Teamsters, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers (IW), International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, International Union of Operating Engineers, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), Laborers' International Union of North America (LiUNA), Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association (M.E.B.A.), National Education Association (NEA), National Employment Law Project, Transportation Communications Union (TCU/IAM), Transport Workers Union (TWU), United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada (UA), United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America (UBC), United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), United Steelworkers (USW), Utility Workers Union of America.

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