OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE
SECTION 301( H) REPORT TO CONGRESS
JANUARY 1, 1998 - DECEMBER
31, 1998
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 Office of Compliance (Office), an independent agency in the
legislative branch, was established in the CAA to administer and
enforce the Act and provide a process for the timely and confidential
resolution of workplace disputes. Section 310( 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 results of such proceedings,
and on the number of covered employees who file a complaint, the
basis for the complaint, and the action taken on the complaint.
This third annual report, which provides information
for the period from January 1, 1998 through December 31, 1998, begins
with a summary of the authority and responsibilities of the Office
of Compliance.
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE AUTHORITY AND 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, 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 and the Executive Director 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 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).
THIRD ANNUAL REPORT
JANUARY 1, 1998 - DECEMBER 31, 1998
NUMBER OF CONTACTS RECEIVED BY THE OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE:
544
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.
544 requests for information
from covered employees, employing offices, the public, unions, and
the press were made by phone and in person from January 1, 1998
to December 31, 1998. Contacts were as follows:
Employees |
302 |
Employing offices |
159 |
Public |
66 |
Unions |
14 |
Press |
3 |
Recorded Information line |
141 |
In addition, the Office of Compliance website
proved to be a frequent and efficient means for covered employees,
covered employing offices and the general public to access information
on the CAA.
REASONS FOR EMPLOYEE CONTACTS
302 covered employees
contacted the Office asking questions under the following sections:
(note: Aggregate numbers will not necessarily match category totals
as a single contact may involve more than one section or subsection
of the CAA, and/ or more than one issue or alleged violation.)
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 |
74 |
202 |
Rights and protections under the Family and Medical Leave
Act of 1993 |
36 |
203 |
Rights and protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938 |
27 |
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 |
0 |
206 |
Rights and protections relating to veterans' employment and
reemployment |
0 |
207 |
Prohibition of intimidation or reprisal |
7 |
210 |
Rights and protections under the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 relating to public services and accommodations;
procedures for remedy of violations |
1 |
215 |
Rights and protections under the Occupational Safety and Health
Act of 1970; procedures for remedy of violations |
2 |
220 |
Application of chapter 71 of title 5, United States Code,
Relating to Federal service labor-management relations |
11 |
N/A |
Questions regarding the general application of the CAA |
33 |
N/A |
Questions on matters which were not cognizable under the CAA |
136 |
The 302 employee contacts were for information
regarding:
Assignments |
9 |
Benefits |
1 |
Compensatory time off |
4 |
Compensation |
7 |
Demotion |
2 |
Discharge |
1 |
Discipline |
8 |
Equal pay |
2 |
Evaluation |
6 |
Exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act |
4 |
General questions regarding statutory requirements |
39 |
Harassment |
28 |
Hiring |
5 |
Hours of work |
4 |
Leave |
37 |
Leave eligibility |
3 |
Overtime pay |
11 |
Promotion |
25 |
Reasonable accommodations |
5 |
Reassignment |
1 |
Recordkeeping |
2 |
Scheduling |
4 |
Termination |
18 |
Terms and conditions of employment |
11 |
Time off |
1 |
Requests for written materials |
5 |
NUMBER OF PROCEEDINGS INITIATED BY COVERED EMPLOYEES:
60
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 an individual employee's request for counseling
alleging a violation of the CAA.1
60 employees from the following employing offices
filed formal requests for counseling:
The Architect of the Capitol |
30 |
Capitol Guide Service |
0 |
Capitol Police |
6 |
Congressional Budget Office |
0 |
House of Representatives (non-member or committee offices) |
4 |
House of Representatives (member offices) |
9 |
House of Representatives (committee office) |
1 |
Senate (non-Senator or committee offices) |
6 |
Senator |
3 |
Senate (committee office) |
1 |
Total employee counseling requests |
60 |
These 60 requests for
counseling alleged violations under the following sections of the
Congressional Accountability Act: (Please see note above
regarding aggregate numbers.)
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 |
61 |
202 |
Rights and protections under the Family and Medical Leave
Act of 1993 |
5 |
203 |
Rights and protections under the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938 |
2 |
207 |
Prohibition of intimidation or reprisal |
27 |
Workplace issues raised
by employees requesting counseling under the CAA fell into the following
categories: (Please see note above regarding aggregate numbers.)
Assignments |
3 |
Benefits |
1 |
Compensation |
2 |
Demotion |
2 |
Discharge |
3 |
Discipline |
2 |
Equal pay |
1 |
Harassment |
14 |
Hiring |
3 |
Layoff |
1 |
Leave |
7 |
Overtime Pay |
2 |
Promotion |
20 |
Reasonable accommodations |
1 |
Reassignment |
4 |
Scheduling |
1 |
Selection |
3 |
Suspension |
1 |
Termination |
21 |
Terms and conditions of employment |
3 |
RESULTS OF THE PROCEEDINGS
COUNSELING
Of the 60 counseling requests received between
January 1, 1998 and December 31, 1998, and the 11 pending on January
1, 1998:
- 11 cases closed
during or after counseling, but before mediation
- 0 settled
- 11 sought no further action;
- 2 cases were
pending at the end of 1998;
- 58 requests
for mediation were filed.
MEDIATION
58 mediation requests received between January
1, 1998 and December 31, 1998. In addition, on January 1, 1998 there
were 12 cases pending in mediation, and 13 cases which had completed
mediation and were in the open period for filing a complaint. Of
those 83 cases:
- 49 cases closed
during or after mediation
- 18 cases were settled (including
one case that settled after District Court suit)
- in 28 cases, no further action
was taken by the covered employee after mediation ended
- 4 civil actions were filed
in District Court (one of which was settled);
- 13 cases were
pending in mediation on December 31, 1998;
- 10 cases had
completed mediation and were in the time period when a complaint
could be filed;
- 12 complaints
were filed after mediation ended.
COMPLAINTS
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 file with the Office, a Hearing Officer
is appointed to hear the case and issue a decision.
Twelve complaints were filed with the Office between
January 1, 1998 and December 31, 1998 and one complaint was pending
on January 1, 1998.
BASIS OF COMPLAINTS
The complaints filed during 1998 involved the
following issues:
- alleged discrimination in assignments based
on race and gender
- alleged failure to provide a reasonable accommodation
for an employee with a disability (2 cases)
- alleged retaliatory discipline
- alleged termination based on age
- alleged termination based on national origin,
race and color
- alleged discrimination based on race and disability
- alleged termination based on age and disability
- alleged termination based on age and gender
- alleged failure to promote based on gender
- alleged failure to promote based on gender
and race
- alleged harassment and termination based on
race and in retaliation for opposing practices made unlawful by
the CAA
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.
During January 1, 1998 - December 31, 1998:
HEARINGS
- 2 hearing officer
decisions were issued;
- 6 cases were
settled or otherwise resolved before the hearings concluded;
- 5 complaints
were pending either with hearings scheduled for early 1999 or
awaiting Hearing Officer decisions.
APPEALS
- No petitions
for review of Hearing Officer decisions were filed with the Board;
- 3 petitions
were pending on January 1, 1998;
- 2 Hearing Officer
decisions were not appealed and became the final decisions of
the Office.
BOARD ACTION
- 3 Board decisions
were issued in 1998;
- No petitions
for review of Hearing Officer decisions were pending on December
31, 1998.
JUDICIAL REVIEW
- 1 Petition for
review was filed;
- One court decision
was issued on a petition for review filed in 1997. The U. S. Court
of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld the Board's decision.
LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS
The Office carries out the Board's investigative
authorities under section 220 of the CAA, involving issues concerning
the appropriateness of bargaining units for labor organization representation,
the duty to bargain, and exceptions to arbitrators' awards.
During January 1, 1998 - December 31, 1998:
- 2 representation
petitions were filed;
- 1 Board decision was issued clarifying that
several newly encumbered positions were included in a previously
certified unit;
- 2 Board Decisions
and Directions of Election were issued, one of which set aside
the results of the initial election because of objectionable conduct
and ordered a second election (prior to the holding of the second
election, the labor organization withdrew is representation petition);
- 2 election agreements
were entered into by the parties and approved by the Executive
Director on behalf of the Board;
- 2 elections
were conducted. As a result of the elections, one labor organization
was certified as the bargaining representative of employees;
- 2 petitions
were pending on December 31,1998: a representation petition filed
by a labor organization seeking to represent a unit of approximately
19 employees, and a unit clarification petition seeking to resolve
the unit status of certain employees in a bargaining unit certified
in 1997.
THE OFFICE OF THE GENERAL
COUNSEL
The Office of the General Counsel is responsible
for matters arising under three sections of the CAA: section
210 - Public Services and Accommodations under the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990; section 215 - Occupational
Safety and Health Act of 1970; and section 220 - unfair labor
practices under chapter 71, of title 5, United States Code.
58 requests for Information and Technical Assistance
were made from January 1998 through December 1998 under the following
sections:
Section |
Description |
Cases |
210 |
Public Services and Accommodations under the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 |
14 |
215 |
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 |
41 |
220 |
Unfair Labor Practices under chapter 71, of title 5, United
States Code |
3 |
From January 1998 through December 1998, the following
actions occurred:
Section 210 |
Charges filed |
1 |
|
Cases closed |
1 |
|
Cases pending as of December 31, 1998 |
0 |
Section 215 |
Requests for inspections filed |
21 |
|
Cases closed |
18 |
|
Cases pending as of December 31, 1998 |
3 |
Section 220 |
Unfair Labor Practice charges filed |
14 |
|
Complaints issued |
1 |
|
Cases closed |
9 |
|
Cases pending as of December 31, 1998 |
5 |
|