Other
Faster Labor Contracts Act
This bill establishes strict deadlines to help newly unionized workers and employers reach a first workplace contract. Employers must begin bargaining within 10 days of a union's request and maintain existing wages and work rules while talks are underway. If both sides cannot reach an agreement within 90 days of bargaining followed by 30 days of federal mediation, a three-person arbitration panel will step in to issue a binding two-year contract based on business finances, cost of living, and industry wage standards.
People affected—Not determinable from the text provided; applies broadly to employers and employees covered under the NLRA undergoing initial contract negotiations, but no specific population counts are stated.
Fiscal magnitude—no CBO estimate published
Reach68provisional · pending reviewrigor: heuristic llm
What this bill touches.
Collective bargaining+65
Who it helps · who it burdens.
Who it helps
- Newly recognized or certified labor organizations and represented employeesGains the right to begin initial contract negotiations within 10 days of request, protection against unilateral changes to wages and conditions during bargaining, continuous bargaining obligations by employers absent decertification, and access to mediation and binding arbitration if talks stall (Sec. 3(1)(C)-(D), Sec. 3(1)(K)(3)).
Who it burdens
- Employers negotiating initial collective bargaining agreementsRequires employers to maintain existing wages and working conditions during bargaining, start initial contract talks within 10 days of a written request, continue bargaining unless a union is formally decertified in an election, and submit to binding arbitration for a two-year contract if negotiations and mediation fail (Sec. 3(1)(C)-(D), Sec. 3(1)(K)(3)).
- Federal Mediation and Conciliation ServiceMust provide mediation services upon request when initial contract negotiations stall after 90 days, establish regulations for three-person arbitration panels, and appoint panel members if the parties fail to do so (Sec. 3(1)(K)(3)(B)-(C)).
- Government Accountability OfficeRequires the Comptroller General to submit a report to Congress within one year examining the average number of days between union certification or recognition and entering into an initial collective bargaining agreement (Sec. 4).