Tech companies and labor advocates are abuzz.
But the bill would affect more people than that.
It relies on millions of independent contractors to provide their services, like giving rides and delivering groceries.
The PRO Act inserts itself right into the middle of these worker debates.
On its journey, however, it attracted considerable attention from the tech world.
Uber, Lyft, Airbnb, and other Silicon Valley companieslobbied against that version of the bill.
Heres a little primer on what it wouldand wouldntdo.
What Exactly Is the PRO Act?
This years bill is very similar to the 2019 PRO Act.
Over the past several decades,amendmentsandchallenges by corporationshave chipped away at the act.
The PRO Act would require all workers represented by a union to pay dues.
And at Google, the PRO Act could make it easier for its newly formed unionto include contract workers.
Under the PRO Act, the government would have more power to punish employers who violate labor laws.
Democrats largely favor the measure.
Advocates for unions see the legislation as critical.
I see the PRO Act as being very practical, Vega, the labor lawyer, said.
More than 150 trade associationssent a letter to lawmakerslast week saying the PRO Act would destabilize the countrys workplaces.
How Could the PRO Act Impact Tech Labor?
The details of how it does that are a little complicated.
If those three standards arent met, workers must be classified as employees.
Or not, Scott said in a statement.
What Happens Next?
No date is set for the Senate vote.
Google, Facebook, and Amazon have yet to publicly state their positions.
They led a $205 millionballot measure campaignlast November that the gig economy companies ultimately won.
She added that the vote put at risk the flexibility that millions of app-based workers rely on.
If the PRO Act also passes the Senate, it will head to President Joe Bidens desk.
Biden has already expressed his support for the bill.
They know that without unions, they can fire off the table on workersunion and non-union alike.
Lyft, DoorDash, and Instacart declined to comment and referred The Markup to the App-Based Work Alliance.
Google and Facebook didnt return requests for comment.
This article wasoriginally published on The Markupand was republished under theCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivativeslicense.
