State Senator Augustus Written Testimony Before the Joint Standing Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

Testimony of State Senator Edward M. Augustus Jr. Written Testimony to the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development
10:00AM in Room B-2

Senate Bill 1049

An Act Concerning Employee Privacy and Mandatory Employer Meetings About Religious, Political, or Labor Representation Matters

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Chairman Torrisi, Chairman McGee, members of the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to testify today on behalf of Senate Bill 1049, The Worker Privacy Protection Act which I filed with Bobby Haynes, of the AFL-CIO, who you will hear from today. 

Basically, employers are requiring all of their employees to gather together to further their own religious, political, or anti-union agenda.  And in response, states are working to pass this legislation to protect the rights of workers.  S.1049 would protect employees from being required to attend meetings in which employers wish to promote their religious, political or anti-union views. 

Similar legislation is being filed all across the country in response to the expanding practice of employers attempting to indoctrinate their employees with religious and anti-union views while in attendance at mandatory meetings.  And, as I understand it, this legislation has already passed either the House or Senate in Connecticut, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Oregon.

This bill does not prohibit employers from offering religious services or from promoting any given viewpoint.  However, it DOES protect employees from being required to attend or utilize those services.

In fact, just the other night the nightly news did a piece on how big companies like Tyson Foods are offering religious services and bringing chaplains onto the payroll to assist employees with difficult decisions and situations.  Organizations like Corporate Chaplains of America have been succeeding in getting their members hired by large companies.  This growing practice, although seemingly reasonable, does highlight the need to ensure that when religion is brought into a non-religious work environment, appropriate protections are in place and employee participation is completely voluntary. 

I want to be clear that this legislation would not affect an employers’ ability to bring a chaplain into the workplace but rather, would ensure that employee’s who utilize those services, do so of their own volition.

The First Amendment gives us the right to be free from forced religious indoctrination, but it also gives employers the right to freedom of speech.  Employers can host seminars on any subject that they choose – including a religious, political, or anti-union seminar.  But what they cannot do is force their employees to attend those sessions or to subscribe to those views.  This legislation ensures that workers will enjoy an appropriate level of privacy and protection. 

The bill requires that mandatory meetings be work related, and it requires employers to notify employees of the rights contained in this bill.  It does, appropriately, contain a religious exemption for religious employers. Clearly, they have to talk about religion. But the vast majority of employers should not bring religion into the workplace with out the consent of their employees.

Again, thank you for the opportunity to testify on this legislation.  I greatly appreciate your efforts to ensure the rights of workers across the Commonwealth, and I respectfully ask that the Committee give this bill a favorable report.