On February 29, the House passed SB 5778 off the floor on a 55-41 vote. The Senate’s final version of the bill was not amended by the House, so it has now passed the Legislature and goes to the Governor’s desk for signature.

Senate passes employer speech bill with a few amendments

February 12, 2024

The Senate passed an amended version of SB 5778 in a 28-20 vote on February 7. The bill included an AWC-requested amendment exempting speech related to the employee’s job that was added while still in committee. On the floor, the Senate also adopted an amendment clarifying that the bill does not prohibit employers requiring employees to attend trainings on preventing workplace harassment and discrimination. The bill now heads to the House for consideration.

Dates to remember

SB 5778 is scheduled for a public hearing in the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on Friday, February 16 at 10:30 am.

House version of employer speech bill moves out of committee

January 26, 2024

HB 1940 was voted out of the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on January 24 with similar amendments to its Senate counterpart. The amendment includes the familiar exemption for employers communicating political or religious information, or requiring attendance at meetings and events, necessary to the employee’s job. In addition, the amendment clarifies that the bill does not prohibit employers from requiring attendance at trainings intended to reduce and prevent workplace harassment or discrimination. Both bills are now in their respective Rules Committees waiting to be considered for a vote of their full chamber.

Employer political and religious speech bill leaves Senate committee with AWC requested amendments

January 19, 2024

SB 5778 was advanced out of committee on January 16 and was sent to the Senate Rules Committee to be considered for a vote of the full Senate. The Senate Labor & Commerce Committee added an amendment that exempts employer political or religious speech that is “necessary for the employees to perform their lawfully required job duties.” This was an important amendment for cities, as it removes the complication the bill would have had for city staff whose job duties include working with elected officials to promote those officials’ political ideas or work on legislation.

HB 1940 is scheduled for a committee vote in the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on January 24 at 8 am.

Companion bills limiting employer political and religious speech get companion hearings in week 1

January 8, 2024

Companion bills that prohibit employers from requiring employees to listen to or participate in the employer’s religious or political speech in the workplace are up for hearings in their respective chambers this week. The bills are similar to legislation that failed to pass in 2023.

HB 1940 and SB 5778 prohibit employers from taking or threatening adverse employment action against an employee that refuses to attend an employer-sponsored meeting, listen to speech, or view communications meant to communicate the employer’s opinion about political or religious matters. Similarly, the bills prohibit employers from taking adverse employment actions as a means to require employees to participate in such political or religious activities, or as a means to punish an employee for reporting a violation of the bill.

The current versions of the bill only provide exemptions for information that an employer is required by law to communicate, and for entirely voluntary employer-sponsored religious or political speech. Religious institutions and affiliated organizations are also exempted from the bill with regards to the prohibitions against enforced participation in religious speech. The bills are enforced through a private right of action, with a 90-day statute of limitations that begins to toll the day of the event in question.

As governments subject to the First Amendment, cities already have limits on the types of religious or political speech that can be promoted in the workplace by employers and how free speech is handled at work. However, these bills are vague on what kinds of conduct is covered, which is especially important for elected officials and their staff – whose job is to promote political ideas and work on legislation.

The bills are similar to SB 5417 (2023), which failed to pass last year. However, the 2023 bill was eventually amended to clarify that employers could require employees to listen to political or religious speech that was necessary to the employee’s job, which addressed some of AWC’s concerns. It’s unclear why the 2024 bills do not contain a similar provision, and AWC will work with legislators to make sure the bill does not inhibit city staff from doing their jobs.

Sen. Karen Keiser (D–Kent), the sponsor of this year’s SB 5778, has already introduced a substitute to be heard on January 11 that includes similar language exempting political or religious speech necessary to the employee’s job. AWC will ask that similar language be included in the House bill as well.

Dates to remember

HB 1940 is scheduled for a public hearing in the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on Wednesday, January 10 at 8 am.

SB 5778 is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Labor & Commerce Committee on Thursday, January 11 at 8 am.