Know Your Labor Rights Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 8418
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Policy Area
- Labor and Employment
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-04-21: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-05-01T18:52:52Z
AI-Generated Summary
Know Your Labor Rights Act (H.R. 8418)
Purpose
This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), a federal law that protects workers' rights to organize and bargain collectively, to require employers to inform employees and job applicants about their rights and protections under the NLRA through posted notices and notifications to new hires.
Key Provisions
- Notice Posting Requirement: The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB, the federal agency enforcing the NLRA) must create rules requiring employers to post notices in visible physical and electronic locations (e.g., workplaces and online job postings) explaining employee rights under the NLRA.
- Free Access to Notices: The NLRB must provide the notice text and form for free on its website for public and employer use.
- New Employee Notification: Employers must inform each new hire about the notice's content.
- Penalties for Non-Compliance: If the NLRB finds a violation, it must issue a compliance order and impose a civil penalty (fine) up to $500 per violation, based on findings of fact.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Adds a new subsection (h) to Section 8 of the NLRA (29 U.S.C. 158), mandating notice posting and new hire notifications—previously, no such universal requirement existed.
- Expands Section 12 of the NLRA (29 U.S.C. 162) to include specific penalties for posting violations, separate from existing penalties for interfering with NLRB processes.
Potential Impacts
- Employers: Increased compliance burden to post notices and notify new hires; risk of fines for failures.
- Employees and Job Applicants: Greater awareness of rights, such as protections against unfair labor practices (e.g., firing for union activity), potentially leading to more enforcement actions.
- NLRB: New responsibilities to develop regulations, provide notices, investigate violations, and issue penalties.
- No direct impacts on citizens broadly or international relations.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Employers (all covered under NLRA, including private sector businesses).
- Employees and job applicants in the private sector.
- National Labor Relations Board (as regulator and enforcer).
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens NLRA enforcement through transparency; penalties are civil and capped, providing clear incentives for compliance without overly harsh measures.
- Constitutional: No apparent conflicts (e.g., aligns with Congress's authority over interstate commerce and labor under the Commerce Clause).
- Political: Bipartisan sponsorship (Democrats and Republicans); promotes worker education without mandating unionization, potentially appealing across ideologies but could spark debate on regulatory burdens for small businesses.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (3)
Rep. Perez, Marie Gluesenkamp [D-WA-3], Rep. LaLota, Nick [R-NY-1], Rep. Bresnahan, Robert P. [R-PA-8]
Recent Actions
- 2026-04-21: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- 2026-04-21: Introduced in House
- 2026-04-21: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Know Your Labor Rights Act — issued 2026-04-21 — PDF (3 pages)