119-hr2870

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2870 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 2870

 To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide compensatory 
 time for employees in the private sector.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 April 10, 2025

 Mrs. Miller of Illinois introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide compensatory 
 time for employees in the private sector.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Working Families Flexibility Act of 
2025''.

SEC. 2. COMPENSATORY TIME.

 

Section 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 207) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
 ``

    (t) Compensatory Time Off for Private Employees.--
 ``

    (1) General rule.--An employee may receive, in accordance 
 with this subsection and in lieu of monetary overtime 
 compensation, compensatory time off at a rate not less than one 
 and one-half hours for each hour of employment for which 
 overtime compensation is required by this section.
 ``

    (2) Conditions.--An employer may provide compensatory 
 time to employees under paragraph

    (1) only if such time is 
 provided in accordance with--
 ``
        (A) applicable provisions of a collective 
 bargaining agreement between the employer and the labor 
 organization that has been certified or recognized as 
 the representative of the employees under applicable 
 law; or
 ``
        (B) in the case of employees who are not 
 represented by a labor organization that has been 
 certified or recognized as the representative of such 
 employees under applicable law, an agreement arrived at 
 between the employer and employee before the 
 performance of the work and affirmed by a written or 
 otherwise verifiable record maintained in accordance 
 with 

section 11
            (c) --
 ``
            (i) in which the employer has offered and 
 the employee has chosen to receive compensatory 
 time in lieu of monetary overtime compensation; 
 and
 ``
            (ii) entered into knowingly and 
 voluntarily by such employee and not as a 
 condition of employment.
 No employee may receive or agree to receive compensatory time 
 off under this subsection unless the employee has worked at 
 least 1,000 hours for the employee's employer during a period 
 of continuous employment with the employer in the 12-month 
 period before the date of agreement or receipt of compensatory 
 time off.
 ``

    (3) Hour limit.--
 ``
        (A) Maximum hours.--An employee may accrue not 
 more than 160 hours of compensatory time.
 ``
        (B) Compensation date.--Not later than January 31 
 of each calendar year, the employee's employer shall 
 provide monetary compensation for any unused 
 compensatory time off accrued during the preceding 
 calendar year that was not used prior to December 31 of 
 the preceding calendar year at the rate prescribed by 
 paragraph

    (6) . An employer may designate and 
 communicate to the employer's employees a 12-month 
 period other than the calendar year, in which case such 
 compensation shall be provided not later than 31 days 
 after the end of such 12-month period.
 ``
            (C) Excess of 80 hours.--The employer may provide 
 monetary compensation for an employee's unused 
 compensatory time in excess of 80 hours at any time 
 after giving the employee at least 30 days notice. Such 
 compensation shall be provided at the rate prescribed 
 by paragraph

    (6) .
 ``
            (D) === Policy ===
-Except where a collective bargaining 
 agreement provides otherwise, an employer that has 
 adopted a policy offering compensatory time to 
 employees may, upon giving employees 30 days notice, 
 discontinue such policy and provide monetary 
 compensation to each employee with accrued compensatory 
 time that has not yet been used for all such 
 compensatory time. Such compensation shall be provided 
 at the rate prescribed by paragraph

    (6) .
 ``
        (E) Written request.--An employee may withdraw an 
 agreement described in paragraph

    (2)
        (B) at any time. An 
 employee may also request in writing that monetary 
 compensation be provided, at any time, for all 
 compensatory time accrued that has not yet been used. 
 Within 30 days of receiving the written request, the 
 employer shall provide the employee the monetary 
 compensation due in accordance with paragraph

    (6) .
 ``

    (4) Private employer actions.--An employer that provides 
 compensatory time under paragraph

    (1) to employees shall not 
 directly or indirectly intimidate, threaten, or coerce or 
 attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce any employee for the 
 purpose of--
 ``
        (A) interfering with such employee's rights under 
 this subsection to request or not request compensatory 
 time off in lieu of payment of monetary overtime 
 compensation for overtime hours; or
 ``
        (B) requiring any employee to use such 
 compensatory time.
 ``

    (5) Termination of employment.--An employee who has 
 accrued compensatory time off authorized to be provided under 
 paragraph

    (1) shall, upon the voluntary or involuntary 
 termination of employment, be paid for the unused compensatory 
 time in accordance with paragraph

    (6) .
 ``

    (6) Rate of compensation.--
 ``
        (A) General rule.--If compensation is to be paid 
 to an employee for accrued compensatory time off, such 
 compensation shall be paid at a rate of compensation 
 not less than--
 ``
            (i) the regular rate received by such 
 employee when the compensatory time was earned; 
 or
 ``
            (ii) the final regular rate received by 
 such employee,
 whichever is higher.
 ``
        (B) Consideration of payment.--Any payment owed 
 to an employee under this subsection for unused 
 compensatory time shall be considered unpaid overtime 
 compensation.
 ``

    (7) Use of time.--An employee--
 ``
        (A) who has accrued compensatory time off 
 authorized to be provided under paragraph

    (1) ; and
 ``
        (B) who has requested the use of such 
 compensatory time,
 shall be permitted by the employee's employer to use such time 
 within a reasonable period after making the request if the use 
 of the compensatory time does not unduly disrupt the operations 
 of the employer.
 ``

    (8) === Definitions. ===
-For purposes of this subsection--
 ``
        (A) the term `employee' does not include an 
 employee of a public agency; and
 ``
        (B) the terms `overtime compensation', 
 `compensatory time', and `compensatory time off' shall 
 have the meanings given such terms by subsection

    (o)

    (7) .''.

SEC. 3. REMEDIES.

 

Section 16 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216) 
is amended--

    (1) in subsection

    (b) , in the first sentence, by striking 
 ``

    (b) Any employer'' and inserting ``

    (b) Except as provided in 
 subsection

    (f) , any employer''; and

    (2) by adding at the end the following:
 ``

    (f) An employer that violates 

section 7

    (t)

    (4) shall be liable to 
the employee affected in the amount of the rate of compensation 
(determined in accordance with 

section 7

    (t)

    (6)
        (A) ) for each hour of 
compensatory time accrued by the employee and in an additional equal 
amount as liquidated damages reduced by the amount of such rate of 
compensation for each hour of compensatory time used by such 
employee.''.

SEC. 4. NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES.

 Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Labor shall revise the materials the Secretary provides, 
under regulations published in 

section 516.4 of title 29, Code of 
Federal Regulations (or any corresponding similar regulation or 
ruling), to employers for purposes of a notice explaining the Fair 
Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) to employees so 
that such notice reflects the amendments made to such Act by this Act.

SEC. 5. GAO REPORT.

 Beginning 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act and each 
of the 3 years thereafter, the Comptroller General shall submit a 
report to Congress providing, with respect to the reporting period 
immediately prior to each such report--

    (1) data concerning the extent to which employers provide 
 compensatory time pursuant to 

section 7

    (t) of the Fair Labor 
 Standards Act of 1938, as added by this Act, and the extent to 
 which employees opt to receive compensatory time;

    (2) the number of complaints alleging a violation of such 
 section filed by any employee with the Secretary of Labor;

    (3) the number of enforcement actions commenced by the 
 Secretary or commenced by the Secretary on behalf of any 
 employee for alleged violations of such section;

    (4) the disposition or status of such complaints and 
 actions described in paragraphs

    (2) and

    (3) ; and

    (5) an account of any unpaid wages, damages, penalties, 
 injunctive relief, or other remedies obtained or sought by the 
 Secretary in connection with such actions described in 
 paragraph

    (3) .

SEC. 6. SUNSET.

 This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall expire 5 years 
after the date of enactment of this Act.
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