Press Releases

The House of Representatives today passed the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act of 2015 (H.R. 511) by a vote of 249 to 177. The legislation will protect the sovereignty of Native American tribes by preventing the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from exerting jurisdiction over tribal businesses on tribal lands.

“As a nation, we have a responsibility to honor and uphold the sovereignty of Native American tribes. As policymakers, we did our part to honor that commitment today,” Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) said. “This bill isn’t about union workers versus nonunion workers, Big Business versus Big Labor, or Republican versus Democrat. It’s about providing tribal leaders and their members the clarity they need and the respect they deserve. I want to thank Congressman Rokita for his leadership on this important issue. I urge the Senate to send this bill to the president’s desk and prove to our friends in Indian country we are serious about protecting their sovereignty.”

“It is not the National Labor Relations Board's place to impinge upon the employment preferences of sovereign tribes, just as it is not able to do so with state and local governments,” Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN) said. “Tribal governments alone, accountable to their tribal members and employees, should decide the labor practices for the entities they own on their own lands, just as state and local governments can now do under the NLRA.  Drawing this line in statute not only helps Tribal government, it also helps remind the executive branch of the sovereignty of state and local governments.”

“I am proud to support this commonsense legislation to protect Native American tribes from the NLRB’s overreach. Simply put, the NLRB has no jurisdiction over the businesses owned and operated by Native American tribes, and Congress has a duty to protect the sovereignty of these tribes. The Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act does exactly that,” Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Chairman Phil Roe (R-TN) said. “This is just one example of how the House Education and Workforce Committee is fighting to stop the president’s activist NLRB, and I thank Congressman Rokita and Chairman Kline for their leadership on this important bill.”

Introduced by Rep. Rokita, the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act of 2015 will amend the National Labor Relations Act to affirm that the law does not apply to any enterprise or institution owned and operated by an Indian tribe and located on tribal land. Since a 2004 decision, the NLRB has used a subjective test to determine on a case-by-case basis when and where to assert its jurisdiction over tribal businesses. H.R. 511 reasserts a longstanding legal standard in place until that decision was made and restores to tribal leaders the ability to manage their labor relations as any other sovereign government does, such as state and local governments.

For more information on the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act of 2015, click here.

 

# # #