Workforce Protections Subcommittee Republican Leader Fred Keller (R-PA) delivered the following remarks, as prepared for delivery, at a subcommittee hearing on H.R. 4826, which upends years of precedent and will exacerbate the labor shortage for those Americans needing home health care:
“The last thing in-home care providers and employers need is more government mandates, such as H.R. 4826. Instead, Congress should advance pro-growth policies that reflect the needs of our modern economy and workforce.
“Unfortunately, many of the nation’s workforce laws and policies are outdated. The Fair Labor Standards Act or FLSA was enacted 84 years ago and affects nearly every workplace across the country.
“Committee Republicans understand this reality and are ready to work in a bipartisan manner to streamline and modernize federal wage-and-hour policies to meet the needs of our 21st century workforce.
“H.R. 4826 fails to do so. This legislation looks backward, harms the very workers Democrats claim they intend to help, and limits consumer access to desperately needed in-home care services. This excessively broad legislation also wrongly lumps health care workers and home health aids in with workers traditionally considered domestic staff.
“This legislation goes too far. It authorizes the Labor Department to enter and inspect individuals’ homes. H.R. 4826 also applies Title 7 of the Civil Rights Act to all employers with just one employee instead of 15. This is unprecedented. Few families have the resources to navigate complex wage-and-hour laws.
“This could drive Americans to find alternatives that put home health aides and personal care assistants out of work, exacerbating the existing labor shortage of in-home care workers. Less access to home health care will force more Americans into institutionalized settings, which will hurt the individuals who prefer to remain at home.
“This legislation is overly punitive, threatens American families with massive regulatory penalties for first-time violations, and puts families at greater risk of lawsuits. This kind of punitive enforcement is not the answer, particularly for families already struggling to navigate a worker shortage, record-high inflation, and rising labor costs.
“Republicans are committed to a forward-looking agenda that will offer all Americans more opportunities to achieve success. Modernizing the FLSA to meet the ever-evolving needs of a workforce that increasingly desires flexibility, choice, and mobility will be an important part of that effort.
“In contrast, Democrats are pushing legislation that will take decisions out of the hands of workers and job creators and put them in the hands of Washington politicians.”
Original source can be found here.
