,i  #aacth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #bcaa  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,june #aa1 #bjac ,mr4
 ,grayson introduced the following bill2
 which was referred to the ,committee on
 ,education and the ,workforce  ,a      
,,bill  ,to protect employees from      
retaliation in the workplace based on   
actions taken to protest or try to      
improve working conditions4  #a4 ,short 
title ,this ,act may be cited as the    
,worker ,anti-,retaliation ,act4  #b4   
,definitions ,in this ,act--  7#a7 the  
term employer means any entity that--   
7,a7 employs employees2 and  7,b7 whose 
annual gross revenue when added to the  
annual gross revenue of its parent      
corporation and all of its affiliated   
corporations exceeds #e1jjj1jjj         
7exclusive of excise taxes at the retail
 level that are separately stated72     
7#b7 the term employee means the        
common-law employees of an employer2    
7#c7 the term parent corporation means  
any corporation that owns or controls at

 least #ea percent of the voting shares 
or other equity in the employer or an   
affiliated corporation2 and  7#d7 the   
term affiliated corporation means any   
corporation that shares a common parent 
corporation with an employer4  #c4      
,prohibition on retaliation against     
employees ,no employer1 or any of its   
agents1 may discharge or cause to be    
discharged or in any other manner       
discriminate against or take or threaten
 any adverse action1 including changes  
in working assignments or conditions1   
any employee because the employee--     
7#a7 disseminated any message on the    
employer's property or elsewhere1       
including through images1 handbilling1  
picketing1 work stoppages1 or gathering 
in groups to protest conflicts with     
employers or to help persuade employers 
to change working conditions1 provided  
the employees do not have a             
representative for the purpose of       
collective bargaining and the employee's
 actions--  7,a7 were not taken during  

work time1 except during a lawful work  
stoppage2  7,b7 were peaceful2 and  7,c7
 did not destroy or damage property of  
the employer or block entrances or exits
 of the employer or otherwise impede the
 operations of the employer or the work 
of other employees2 or  7#b7 planned any
 of the actions described in paragraph  
7#a71 or assisted1 encouraged1 or       
supported another employee in engaging  
in any such actions4  #d4 ,presumption  
of unlawful acts ,any adverse action    
described in section #c1 levied against 
an employee engaging in lawful actions  
within #ij days of the date of the      
employee's activity1 shall be presumed  
unlawful and may only be rebutted by    
clear and convincing evidence proving   
adverse actions were taken for lawful   
reasons4  #e4 ,private right of action  
7a7 ,in ,general ,any employee who      
believes that he or she has been        
discharged1 disciplined1 or otherwise   
discriminated against by an employer or 
any of its agents1 whether the agent was

 operating within the scope of          
employment or without1 in violation of  
section #c 7or any class of such        
employees7 may bring an action in a     
court of competent jurisdiction against 
either the employer or the offending    
agent1 in an individual capacity1 for   
any of the following3  7#a7 to enjoin   
such violation2  7#b7 to recover any    
pay1 backpay1 damages1 or other amounts 
as settlement1 plus an amount equal to  
three times the amount of such backpay  
and damages and reasonable attorneys'   
fees and expenses2 or  7#c7 to recover  
civil penalties of #a1jjj per violation1
 per affected employee1 per day4  7b7   
,limitation ,an action brought under    
subsection 7a7 may not be brought later 
than #c years after the affected        
employee knows or should have known of  
the violation4  #f4 ,restriction on     
employer of an employee found to be in  
violation of this ,act ,no employer may 
provide for an employee's defense1      
backpay1 damages1 or settlement if that 

employee is found to be in violation of 
section #c of this ,act4  #g4 ,rule of  
construction ,this ,act shall be        
liberally construed to effectuate its   
purposes4 ,if any court finds any       
provision or application of this ,act to
 be invalid or inoperative1 in whole or 
in part1 the remaining provisions of    
this ,act shall remain in effect4  #h4  
,effective date ,this ,act shall take   
effect #cj days after the date of       
enactment of this ,act4