H.R. 675 — Introduced in House

I 113th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 675 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES February 13, 2013 Ms. Schakowsky introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, House Administration, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To extend protections to part-time workers in the areas of employer-provided health insurance, family and medical leave, and pension plans. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Part-Time Worker Bill of Rights Act of 2013. 2. Extension of employer health insurance coverage mandate to part-time employees (a) Large employers not offering health coverage (1) In general Subsection (a) of section 4980H of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— (A) by striking full-time employees in paragraph (1) and inserting employees, (B) by striking full-time employee in paragraph (2) and inserting employee, and (C) by striking hereby imposed on the employer and all that follows and inserting hereby imposed on the employer, with respect to each employee employed by the employer during such month, an assessable payment equal to the applicable payment amount with respect to such employee.. (2) Proration of applicable payment amount for part-time employees Paragraph (1) of section 4980H(c) of such Code is amended to read as follows: (1) Applicable payment amount The term applicable payment amount means, with respect to any employee for any month— (A) in the case of a full-time employee, 1/12 of $2,000, and (B) in the case of any other employee, the amount which bears the same ratio to the amount determined under subparagraph (A) as— (i) the average hours of service per week of such employee for such month, bears to (ii) 30. . (b) Large employers offering coverage with employees who qualify for premium tax credits or cost-Sharing reductions (1) In general Paragraph (1) of section 4980H(b) of such Code is amended— (A) by striking full-time employees each place it appears in subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting employees, and (B) by striking hereby imposed on the employer and all that follows and inserting hereby imposed on the employer, with respect to each employee described in subparagraph (B) for such month, an assessable payment equal to 1/12 of $3,000.. (2) Proration for part-time employees Subsection (b) of section 4980H of such Code is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (3) Proration for part-time employees In the case of any employee other than a full-time employee, paragraph (1) shall be applied by substituting for $3,000 the dollar amount which bears the same ratio to $3,000 as— (A) the average hours of service per week of such employee for the month with respect to which such paragraph applies, bears to (B) 30. . (3) Application of overall limitation Paragraph (2) of section 4980H(b) of such Code is amended to read as follows: (2) Overall limitation The aggregate amount of tax determined under paragraph (1) with respect to any applicable large employer for any month shall not exceed the aggregate amount of tax which would have been determined under subsection (a) with respect to such employer for such month if such employer were described in subsection (a)(1). . (c) Application of hours of service rules Subparagraph (B) of section 4980H(c)(4) of such Code is amended by striking for the application of this paragraph to and inserting with respect to. (d) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall apply to months beginning after December 31, 2013. 3. Elimination of hours of service requirement for FMLA leave (a) Amendment Section 101(2)(A) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows: (A) In general The term eligible employee means an employee who has been employed, either as a full-time or part-time employee, for at least 12 months by the employer with respect to whom leave is requested under section 102. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect beginning on the date that is one year after the date of enactment of this Act. 4. Treatment of employees working at less than full-time under participation, vesting, and accrual rules governing pension plans (a) Participation rules (1) In general Section 202(a)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1052(a)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (E) (i) For purposes of this paragraph, in the case of any employee who, as of the beginning of the 12-month period referred to in subparagraph (A)— (I) has customarily completed 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, or (II) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily constitutes 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, completion of 500 hours of service within such period shall be treated as completion of 1,000 hours of service. (ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the extent to which employment in any type of position customarily constitutes less than 1,000 hours of service per year shall be determined with respect to each pension plan in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe providing for consideration of facts and circumstances peculiar to the work-force constituting the participants in such plan. . (2) Conforming amendment Section 204(b)(1)(E) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1054(b)(1)(E)) is amended by striking section 202(a)(3)(A) and inserting subparagraphs (A) and (E) of section 202(a)(3). (b) Vesting rules (1) In general Section 203(b)(2) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1053(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (E) (i) For purposes of this paragraph, in the case of any employee who, as of the beginning of the period designated by the plan pursuant to subparagraph (A)— (I) has customarily completed 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, or (II) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily constitutes 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, completion of 500 hours of service within such period shall be treated as completion of 1,000 hours of service. (ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the extent to which employment in any type of position customarily constitutes less than 1,000 hours of service per year shall be determined with respect to each pension plan in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe providing for consideration of facts and circumstances peculiar to the work-force constituting the participants in such plan. . (2) 1-year breaks in service Section 203(b)(3) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1053(b)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (F) (i) For purposes of this paragraph, in the case of any employee who, as of the beginning of the period designated by the plan pursuant to subparagraph (A)— (I) has customarily completed 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, or (II) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily constitutes 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, completion of 250 hours of service within such period shall be treated as completion of 500 hours of service. (ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the extent to which employment in any type of position customarily constitutes less than 1,000 hours of service per year shall be determined with respect to each pension plan in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe providing for consideration of facts and circumstances peculiar to the work-force constituting the participants in such plan. . (c) Accrual rules Section 204(b)(4)(C) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1054(b)(4)(C)) is amended— (1) by inserting (i) after (C); and (2) by adding at the end the following new clauses: (ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, in the case of any employee who, as of the beginning of the period designated by the plan pursuant to clause (i)— (I) has customarily completed 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, or (II) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily constitutes 500 or more hours of service per year but less than 1,000 hours of service per year, completion of 500 hours of service within such period shall be treated as completion of 1,000 hours of service. (iii) For purposes of clause (ii), the extent to which employment in any type of position customarily constitutes less than 1,000 hours of service per year shall be determined with respect to each pension plan in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe providing for consideration of facts and circumstances peculiar to the work-force constituting the participants in such plan. . (d) Effective dates (1) In general Except as provided in subsection (b), the amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to plan years beginning on or after the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. (2) Special rule for collectively bargained plans In the case of a plan maintained pursuant to 1 or more collective bargaining agreements between employee representatives and 1 or more employers ratified on or before the date of the enactment of this Act, the amendments made by this section shall not apply to plan years beginning before the later of— (A) the earlier of— (i) the date on which the last of the collective bargaining agreements relating to the plan terminates (determined without regard to any extension thereof agreed to after the date of the enactment of this Act); or (ii) the date that is 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act; or (B) the date that is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. For purposes of subparagraph (A), any plan amendment made pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement relating to the plan which amends the plan solely to conform to any requirement added by this section shall not be treated as a termination of such collective bargaining agreement.