1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to employment; enacting the Temporary Workers 
  1.3             Bill of Rights; providing criminal and civil 
  1.4             penalties; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes, chapter 181. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [181.18] [SHORT TITLE.] 
  1.8      Sections 181.18 to 181.24 may be cited as the Temporary 
  1.9   Workers Bill of Rights. 
  1.10     Sec. 2.  [181.19] [DEFINITIONS.] 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [SCOPE.] For the purposes of sections 
  1.12  181.18 to 181.24, the terms in this section have the meanings 
  1.13  given them. 
  1.14     Subd. 2.  [TEMPORARY SERVICES COMPANY.] "Temporary services 
  1.15  company" means: 
  1.16     (1) any person or entity regularly procuring workers, with 
  1.17  or without compensation, for other persons temporarily; 
  1.18     (2) any person or entity regularly procuring opportunities 
  1.19  for workers to work for employers; or 
  1.20     (3) any agent of a person or entity described in clause (1) 
  1.21  or (2). 
  1.22     Subd. 3.  [TEMPORARY WORKER; WORKER.] "Temporary worker" or 
  1.23  "worker" means any worker who is not a permanent employee. 
  1.24     Subd. 4.  [CLIENT; CLIENT COMPANY.] "Client" or "client 
  1.25  company" means any person, including any natural person, sole 
  2.1   proprietorship, partnership, limited partnership, corporation, 
  2.2   limited liability company or joint venture, for which a 
  2.3   temporary services company procures or provides temporary 
  2.4   workers. 
  2.5      Sec. 3.  [181.20] [NOTICES AND DISCLOSURES.] 
  2.6      Subdivision 1.  [REQUIRED POSTED NOTICES.] A temporary 
  2.7   employment company must post at the location where temporary 
  2.8   workers are required to appear for assignment to work or for 
  2.9   payment of compensation, or if it does not have such a location, 
  2.10  must provide to each temporary worker seeking work a list of all 
  2.11  client companies at which work is available through the 
  2.12  temporary services company.  For each job opportunity posted, 
  2.13  the temporary services company must provide the following 
  2.14  information: 
  2.15     (1) the name and address of the client and the exact 
  2.16  address of the work site, directions to the work site, and a 
  2.17  telephone number at which a temporary worker can be reached in 
  2.18  the event of an emergency; 
  2.19     (2) the type of job opportunity available, including a job 
  2.20  title; 
  2.21     (3) a detailed description of the work to be performed by 
  2.22  the temporary worker, including any requirements for special 
  2.23  attire, accessories, tools, or safety equipment; 
  2.24     (4) the method of computing compensation and the amount of 
  2.25  compensation and employee benefits to be paid for the work, and 
  2.26  the overtime rate of pay; 
  2.27     (5) the hourly rate and any other fees or charges paid or 
  2.28  payable to the temporary services company by or on behalf of the 
  2.29  client with respect to the work to be performed; 
  2.30     (6) if transportation is to be provided to the work site, 
  2.31  either by the temporary services company or by the client, the 
  2.32  cost of the transportation, if any, whether the work site is 
  2.33  accessible by public or personal transportation, and the 
  2.34  approximate commute time to and from the work site; 
  2.35     (7) the duration of the work to be performed by the 
  2.36  temporary worker, including the times of day the work will begin 
  3.1   and end, the days on which the work will be performed including 
  3.2   the end date, and whether there is any possibility of overtime 
  3.3   work or of extension of the work past the anticipated end date; 
  3.4      (8) a complete and accurate description of work site 
  3.5   hazards to which the temporary worker may become exposed in 
  3.6   connection with the work, including any hazardous materials the 
  3.7   worker may be required to use or handle and any physical 
  3.8   conditions or work practices that do not comply with applicable 
  3.9   occupational health and safety standards; 
  3.10     (9) whether meals are provided, either by the temporary 
  3.11  services company or by the client, and the cost of those meals, 
  3.12  if any; 
  3.13     (10) whether the temporary worker will be charged for using 
  3.14  special attire, accessories, tools, or safety equipment 
  3.15  belonging to either the temporary services company or the client 
  3.16  company; and 
  3.17     (11) whether federal or state prevailing wage requirements 
  3.18  apply to the work to be performed and, if so, the prevailing 
  3.19  wages applicable to the work and a telephone number to contact 
  3.20  the department of labor and industry with questions. 
  3.21     Subd. 2.  [TIMING OF NOTICE.] Before any temporary worker 
  3.22  is given any new job assignment, regardless of whether the 
  3.23  assignment is with a client company for which the temporary 
  3.24  worker has worked before, the temporary services company must 
  3.25  provide the temporary worker with a new notice, as described in 
  3.26  subdivision 1, for the new assignment. 
  3.27     Subd. 3.  [FORM OF NOTICE.] The notices described in this 
  3.28  section must be written in English and any other language or 
  3.29  languages that are generally used in the locale or locales of 
  3.30  the temporary services company and its clients.  Copies of all 
  3.31  notices required by this section shall be kept on file for a 
  3.32  period of one year by the temporary services company and shall 
  3.33  be made available for inspection by affected temporary workers, 
  3.34  who shall be given copies of the notices without charge within 
  3.35  ten days of requesting copies. 
  3.36     Sec. 4.  [181.21] [COMPENSATION.] 
  4.1      Subdivision 1.  [FORM OF COMPENSATION.] A temporary 
  4.2   services company must compensate temporary workers for work 
  4.3   performed in the form of cash, or commonly accepted negotiable 
  4.4   instruments that are payable in cash on demand at a financial 
  4.5   institution, and may not discount compensation regardless of the 
  4.6   manner or form of payment. 
  4.7      Subd. 2.  [EQUAL COMPENSATION.] A temporary services 
  4.8   company must pay to all temporary workers compensation and 
  4.9   employee benefits that are at least equal to the compensation 
  4.10  and benefits earned by permanent employees of the client company 
  4.11  who perform work that is substantially equivalent to the work 
  4.12  performed by the temporary workers.  If the temporary worker 
  4.13  replaces a client company employee who is on strike or has been 
  4.14  locked out by the client company pursuant to a labor dispute, 
  4.15  the compensation and benefits paid to the temporary worker may 
  4.16  not exceed the compensation and benefits paid to the permanent 
  4.17  employee being replaced. 
  4.18     Subd. 3.  [MINIMUM WAGE.] A temporary services company must 
  4.19  pay the applicable federal or state minimum wage to all 
  4.20  temporary workers.  No deduction, other than those permitted by 
  4.21  state or federal law, may be applied to reduce a worker's wage 
  4.22  below the applicable state or federal minimum. 
  4.23     Subd. 4.  [WAGE-RELATED DISCLOSURES.] At the time of each 
  4.24  payment of wages, a temporary services company must provide to 
  4.25  each temporary worker an itemized statement showing in detail 
  4.26  all deductions made from the worker's wages and a written 
  4.27  notification, which may be included with the statement of 
  4.28  deductions, detailing the hourly rate and any other fees or 
  4.29  charges paid or payable to the temporary services company by or 
  4.30  on behalf of the client company in connection with the work 
  4.31  performed by the temporary worker.  The wage records of the 
  4.32  temporary services company must include the job title applied to 
  4.33  the work performed by the temporary worker, which must be the 
  4.34  same as the job title supplied to the worker under section 
  4.35  181.20. 
  4.36     Subd. 5.  [ANNUAL SUMMARIES.] No later than February 1 of 
  5.1   each year, a temporary services company must provide to each 
  5.2   temporary worker an annual earnings summary from the preceding 
  5.3   calendar year. 
  5.4      Sec. 5.  [181.22] [PROHIBITED CHARGES AND DEDUCTIONS.] 
  5.5      No temporary services company shall charge a temporary 
  5.6   worker, or make any deduction from the temporary worker's wages, 
  5.7   for any of the following: 
  5.8      (1) safety equipment, clothing, tools, accessories, or any 
  5.9   other items required by the nature of the work either by law, 
  5.10  custom, or as a requirement of the client company, except that 
  5.11  if the temporary services company temporarily provides these 
  5.12  items to a worker, and the worker fails to return the items, the 
  5.13  temporary services company may charge the worker the market 
  5.14  value of the items, unless the items were damaged through 
  5.15  ordinary use or lost through no fault of the worker.  For items 
  5.16  other than those listed in this clause that the temporary 
  5.17  services company makes available for purchase, the charge to the 
  5.18  temporary worker for the item may not be more than the market 
  5.19  value or the temporary services company's cost for the item, 
  5.20  whichever is less; 
  5.21     (2) more than a reasonable amount to transport a worker to 
  5.22  or from the designated work site.  For the purposes of this 
  5.23  requirement, a reasonable amount is no greater than the 
  5.24  prevailing cost of public transportation in the geographic area; 
  5.25     (3) directly or indirectly cashing a worker's paycheck; or 
  5.26     (4) more than the actual cost of providing a meal, if the 
  5.27  meal is provided at the work site by the temporary services 
  5.28  company. 
  5.29     Sec. 6.  [181.23] [TEMPORARY WORKERS GENERALLY.] 
  5.30     Subdivision 1.  [FACILITIES WHERE WORK IS ASSIGNED.] A 
  5.31  temporary services company that operates an office where 
  5.32  temporary workers are required to appear for assignment to work 
  5.33  or for payment of compensation shall provide, in that office, 
  5.34  restroom facilities, access to drinking water, and sufficient 
  5.35  seating for the number of workers generally present. 
  5.36     Subd. 2.  [MOTOR VEHICLES.] A temporary services company 
  6.1   must insure any motor vehicle owned or operated by the company 
  6.2   and used for the transportation of workers.  Any person 
  6.3   operating such a vehicle must hold any category of driver's 
  6.4   license applicable to the number of people being transported. 
  6.5      Subd. 3.  [RIGHT TO ACCEPT PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT.] A 
  6.6   temporary services company shall not restrict the right of a 
  6.7   temporary worker to accept a permanent position with a client 
  6.8   company to whom the worker has been referred for temporary work, 
  6.9   or restrict the right of a client company to offer permanent 
  6.10  employment to the worker.  A temporary services company may, 
  6.11  however, collect a reasonable placement fee from the client upon 
  6.12  permanent employment of a temporary worker referred by the 
  6.13  temporary services company. 
  6.14     Subd. 4.  [WORKERS' COMPENSATION EXPERIENCE RATINGS.] The 
  6.15  workers' compensation premiums paid by a temporary services 
  6.16  company shall be determined based on the work done by temporary 
  6.17  workers for client companies. 
  6.18     Subd. 5.  [UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES.] A temporary services 
  6.19  company shall not discourage membership in a labor organization, 
  6.20  or do any other act constituting a violation of section 179.12, 
  6.21  with respect to temporary workers. 
  6.22     Subd. 6.  [SUPERVISION OF WORKERS.] For the purposes of any 
  6.23  provision of law, including, but not limited to, any provision 
  6.24  of chapter 326, requiring that work be supervised by an 
  6.25  individual holding a license issued by the state, a temporary 
  6.26  worker may be supervised only by another person dispatched to 
  6.27  the work site by the same temporary services company. 
  6.28     Subd. 7.  [FALSE REPRESENTATIONS.] A temporary services 
  6.29  company shall not make or give, or cause to be made or given, 
  6.30  any false, misleading, or deceptive advertisements, information, 
  6.31  or representations concerning the services, compensation, 
  6.32  benefits, or work opportunities offered by the temporary 
  6.33  services company. 
  6.34     Subd. 8.  [IDENTIFYING INFORMATION.] All advertisements of 
  6.35  a temporary services company shall include the correct name of 
  6.36  the temporary services company and either the street address of 
  7.1   the company's place of business or the current telephone number 
  7.2   of the company at its place of business. 
  7.3      Subd. 9.  [RETALIATION PROHIBITED.] A temporary services 
  7.4   company or client company shall not discharge, reduce the 
  7.5   compensation of, or otherwise discriminate against any temporary 
  7.6   worker or other employee for making a complaint of a violation 
  7.7   of sections 1 to 7, for participating in any proceedings under 
  7.8   those sections, for using any civil remedies to enforce the 
  7.9   provisions of those sections, or otherwise asserting rights 
  7.10  under those sections. 
  7.11     Sec. 7.  [181.24] [REMEDIES.] 
  7.12     Subdivision 1.  [CRIMINAL PENALTIES.] Any person who 
  7.13  violates any provision of sections 181.18 to 181.23 is guilty of 
  7.14  a misdemeanor. 
  7.15     Subd. 2.  [CIVIL PENALTIES.] (a) Any person aggrieved by a 
  7.16  violation of sections 181.18 to 181.23 may bring an action to 
  7.17  recover any and all damages recoverable at law, together with 
  7.18  all costs and disbursements, including attorney fees, and may 
  7.19  receive equitable and injunctive relief as determined by the 
  7.20  court. 
  7.21     (b) Sections 181.18 to 181.23 may be enforced by the 
  7.22  attorney general pursuant to section 8.31.  The attorney general 
  7.23  may recover costs and disbursements, including costs of 
  7.24  investigation and reasonable attorney fees.