NWRA joined other organizations on a letter to Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Congressman James Comer (R-KY) in support of the Save Local Business Act. The bill would codify a “direct” control joint-employer standard in both the Fair Labor Standards Act and National Labor Relations Act.
“The waste and recycling industry agrees with the need for a consistent standard to guide businesses in confidently deciding whether to enter into arrangements intended to constitute contractor relationships,” said NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith. “We believe that a clear delineation of employer responsibility will help ensure a safe workplace, whereas a blanket assumption of joint-employer status can result in confusing and conflicting directives that make employees less, not more, safe.”
This issue of joint-employer status stems from the 2015 Browning-Ferris decision by the National Labor Relations Board that had put users of contractors at risk of a joint-employer finding if they required their contractors’ workers to follow safety rules generally applicable to anyone on the premises, regardless of their employment status.