The Biden Administration recently released its $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal, the American Jobs Plan, which includes the text of the Protecting the Right To Organize (PRO) Act of 2021. Designed to increase the power and influence of union bosses, the PRO Act imposes a series of new federal labor regulations that are damaging to the U.S. economy and hurt workers.
Notably, the PRO Act establishes a nationwide “ABC Test”—a controversial metric used to classify employees as independent contractors, even if its not what the worker wants. Modeled after California’s disastrous AB 5 law, a federal ABC Test would:
- Eliminate workers’ freedom to choose when and where they would like to work;
- Limit opportunities to earn main or supplemental income through flexible freelance work;
- Kill jobs, as companies would be forced to cut employment to pay for new “employee” benefits;
For Latino workers, these changes are particularly devastating. As it stands, the economic damage related to the pandemic disproportionately affected the Hispanic workforce, with Latino unemployment soaring to 10.4 percent in 2020, compared to the US average of just 8.1 percent. For those searching for work, independent contracting can become a vital alternative to full-time employment. The PRO Act will eliminate many gig economy, freelance, and independent contracting opportunities.
Latinos also occupy jobs in industries that rely heavily on independent contractors. For instance, about 34 percent of all construction workers are Hispanic and 13 percent of all Latinos within the US work within the construction industry. If the PRO Act were to pass, many of those Hispanic construction workers would lose good job opportunities as companies would be forced to restrict individuals who can participate in projects.
Clearly, the PRO Act and its ABC Test are bad for both the Hispanic community and the nation at large. HLF strongly opposes a federal ABC test and urges our country’s lawmakers to do the same.
