OFFICE
OF COMPLIANCE SECTION 301(H) REPORT TO CONGRESS
January 23, 1996 --December 31, 1996
INTRODUCTION
The Congressional Accountability Act (CAA) generally
applies provisions of eleven federal labor and employment laws to
over 20,000 covered congressional employees and employing offices.
The CAA establishes the Office of Compliance (Office), an independent
agency in the legislative branch of government, to administer and
enforce the CAA and provide a process for speedy, confidential resolution
of workplace disputes. Section 301( h) of the CAA requires that
the Office of Compliance:
"... compile and publish statistics on the
use of the Office by covered employees, including the number and
type of contacts made with the Office, on the reason for such
contacts, on the number of covered employees who initiated proceedings
with the Office under this Act and the result of such proceedings,
and on the number of covered employees who filed a complaint,
the basis for the complaint, and the action taken on the complaint."
This first report provides the information for
the period from January 23, 1996 through December 31, 1996. Future
reports will be issued soon after the end of each calendar year,
beginning in January 1998. The report begins with a summary of the
authority and responsibilities of the Office of Compliance.
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE AUTHORITY &
RESPONSIBILITIES
The CAA establishes the Office of Compliance
with a Board of five members, who serve on a part-time basis, and
four statutory appointees: the Executive Director, Deputy Executive
Director for the Senate, Deputy Executive Director for the House,
and the General Counsel. The Office is charged with providing alternative
dispute resolution procedures, as well as adjudicative hearings
and appeals, for covered legislative branch employees and education
and information on the CAA to members of Congress, other employing
offices, and employees of the legislative branch. The Board is required
to adopt substantive regulations for implementation of certain provisions
of the CAA. The Executive Director is required to adopt rules governing
the procedures of the Office. The Office of the General Counsel
enforces the provisions of sections 210 and 215, relating to health
and safety and public access requirements, including investigation
and prosecution of claims under these sections, and periodic inspections
to ensure compliance. Additionally, the General Counsel investigates
and prosecutes unfair labor practices under section 220 of the CAA.
The CAA applies the rights and protections of
provisions of the following eleven labor and employment statutes
to covered employees within the legislative branch: title VII of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment
Act of 1967, title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990,
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Family and Medical Leave Act
of 1993, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the Employee Polygraph
Protection Act of 1988, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification
Act, chapter 43 of title 38 of the U. S. Code (relating to veterans'
employment and reemployment), the Americans with Disabilities Act
of 1990 relating to public services and accommodations, the Occupational
Safety and Health Act of 1970, and chapter 71 of title 5 of the
U. S. Code (relating to federal service labor-management relations).
On January 23, 1996, key provisions of the law
took effect covering the House of Representatives, the Senate, the
Capitol Guide Service, the Capitol Police, the Congressional Budget
Office, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Office of
the Attending Physician, the Office of Compliance, and their employees.
On October 1, 1996, section 220, the labor management section of
the CAA, took effect, as did the OSHA and ADA sections on January
1, 1997.
USE OF THE OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
Section 301( h) of the Congressional Accountability
Act mandates that the Office of Compliance:
"... compile and publish statistics on the
use of the Office by covered employees, including the number
and type of contacts made with the Office, on the reason
for such contacts, on the number of covered employees
who initiated proceedings with the Office under this Act
and the result of such proceedings, and on the number
of covered employees who filed a complaint, the basis
for the complaint, and the action taken on the complaint."
The following statistics provide this data on
the use of the Office by covered employees from January 23, 1996,
when the CAA generally took effect, to December 31, 1996. (Given
the statutory time frames, proceedings initiated in 1996 may still
be in the dispute resolution process as of December 31, 1996.)
Number and Types of Contacts
Received: 1677
Employees and employing offices may, at any
time, seek informal advice and information on the procedures of
the Office and the rights, protections, and responsibilities afforded
under the CAA. The Office responds to all inquiries on a confidential
basis.
1677 requests for information from
covered employees, employing offices, the public unions, and the
press were made by phone and in person from January 23,1996 to December
31, 1996. Contacts were made by:
Employees |
652 |
Employing offices |
603 |
Public |
107 |
Unions |
36 |
Press |
44 |
Recorded Information line |
235 |
Total requests for information |
1677 |
Reasons for Employee
Contacts
652 covered employees contacted
the Office asking questions under the following sections:1
Section |
Description |
Contacts |
201 |
Rights and protections under title VII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967,
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and title I of the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 |
112 |
202 |
Rights and protections under the Family and Medical Leave
Act of 1993 |
26 |
203 |
Rights and protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938 |
155 |
204 |
Rights and protections under the Employee Polygraph Protection
Act of 1988 |
0 |
205 |
Rights and protections under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Notification Act |
73 |
206 |
Rights and protections relating to veterans' employment and
reemployment |
3 |
207 |
Prohibition of intimidation or reprisal |
8 |
210 |
Rights and protections under the Americans with DisabilitiesAct
of 1990 relating to public services and accommodations; procedures
for remedy of violations |
1 |
215 |
Rights and protections under the ccupational Safety and Health
Act of 1970; procedures for remedy of violations |
4 |
220 |
Application of chapter 71 of title 5, United States Code,
relating to federal service labor-management relations |
13 |
230 |
Study and recommendations regarding General Accounting Office,
Government Printing Office, and Library of Congress |
9 |
CAA |
Questions regarding the general application of the CAA |
128 |
Additionally, the office received 150 questions
from employees on matters which were not cognizable under the CAA.
The 652 employee contacts were
for information regarding:
Assignments |
4 |
Belo
contracts |
14 |
Benefits
|
1 |
Compensatory
time off |
9 |
Compensation
|
29 |
Demotion
|
8 |
Discipline
|
2 |
Equal
pay |
1 |
Evaluation
|
2 |
Exemptions
under the Fair Labor Standards Act |
42 |
General
questions regarding statutory requirements |
102 |
Harassment
|
14 |
Hiring
|
3 |
Hours
of work |
28 |
Inspections |
1 |
Interns |
1 |
Leave
|
14 |
Leave
eligibility |
4 |
Office
operations |
1 |
Overtime
pay |
32 |
Promotion
|
12 |
Reasonable
accommodations |
12 |
Record
keeping |
4 |
Recruitment |
1 |
Reinstatement
|
6 |
Rulemaking |
3 |
Scheduling
|
34 |
Severance |
1 |
Termination |
119 |
Terms
and conditions of employment |
14 |
Time-off
|
1 |
Requests
for written materials |
58 |
Number of Proceedings Initiated by Covered Employees: 95
Pursuant to title IV of the CAA, the Office of Compliance
provides dispute resolution in the form of counseling and mediation.
A proceeding under the CAA is initiated by a
request for counseling alleging a violation of the CAA.
95 employees from the following
offices filed requests for counseling:
The
Architect of the Capitol |
34 |
Capitol
Guide Service |
6 |
Capitol
Police |
2 |
Congressional
Budget Office |
1 |
House
of Representatives (non-member or
committee offices) |
39 |
House
of Representatives (member offices) |
7 |
Senate
Committee |
1 |
Senate
(non-Senator offices) |
2 |
Senator
|
3 |
Total employee counseling requests
|
95 |
These 95 requests for counseling alleged violations under
the following sections of the Congressional Accountability Act:2
Section |
Description |
Cases |
201 |
Rights and protections under title VII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967,
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and title I of the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 |
82 |
202 |
Rights and protections under the Family and Medical Leave
Act of 1993 |
8 |
203 |
Rights and protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938
|
12 |
205 |
Rights and protections under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Notification Act |
35 |
207 |
Prohibition of intimidation or reprisal |
22 |
Workplace issues raised by the 95 employees requesting
counseling fell into the following categories:3
Assignments |
7 |
Compensatory
time off |
1 |
Compensation |
24 |
Discipline |
13 |
Fair Labor
Standards Act exemptions |
2 |
Harassment |
20 |
Hiring |
4 |
Hours of
work |
5 |
Leave |
2 |
Overtime
pay |
3 |
Promotion
11 |
11 |
Reasonable
accommodation 1 |
1 |
Reassignment
1 |
1 |
Reinstatement
1 |
1 |
Termination
47 |
47 |
Terms and
conditions of employment 17 |
17 |
Results of the Proceedings
Counseling
Of the ninety-five
(95) counseling requests received between Jan. 23 and Dec.
31, 1996:
- twenty-six (26) cases closed
during or after counseling with no request for mediation
- twenty-nine
(29) cases were pending at various stages in the counseling
process at the end of 1996
- forty (40) requests for mediation
were filed
Mediation
Of the forty (40) mediation requests received
between Jan. 23 and Dec. 31, 1996:
- fourteen (14) cases closed
during or after mediation
- eight (8) cases were formally
settled
- in six (6) cases, no further action was taken
by the employee after mediation ended
- five (5) cases were in mediation
on December 31, 1996
- eight (8) cases had completed mediation
and were in the time period when a complaint could be filed
- thirteen (13) complaints
were filed after mediation
Complaints and Hearings
If the dispute remains unresolved after counseling
and mediation, an employee may elect to file a civil action in the
district courts of the United States or to file a complaint with
the Office. If a complaint is filed with the Office, a Hearing Officer
is appointed to hear the case and issue a decision.
Of the thirteen (13) complaints filed after
mediation (between Jan. 23 and Dec. 31, 1996):
- five (5) hearings
were scheduled for twelve (12) cases (8 cases being consolidated
for one hearing)
- one (1) complaint was pending
Of the five (5) hearings:
- four (4) hearings were completed,
covering eleven (11) cases, and Hearing Officer decisions
were issued in those four (4) hearings
- one (1) hearing was scheduled
but not completed as of December 31, 1996
Basis of Complaints
The thirteen (13) complaints filed
involved the following issues:
- Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification
Act: eleven (11) complaints
- Alleged sexual harassment, reprisal, and
hostile work environment: one (1) complaint
- Alleged denial of promotion because of color
and religion and discrimination based on gender: one (1)
complaint
Action Taken on Complaints
Any party aggrieved by a Hearing Officer's
decision may file a petition for review of the decision by the Board
of Directors of the Office.
As of December 31, 1996, of the four
(4) Hearing Officer decisions issued:
- two (2) petitions for review had been
filed with the Board
- the appeal period for the other
two( 2) decisions was still open
No Board decisions were issued in
1996; to our knowledge, no civil actions were filed in Federal Court
in 1996 by covered employees.
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