SB 406 — An Act providing for regulation of the meat packing and food processing industry by creating facility health and safety committees in the workplace; establishing the industry workers' rights coordinator within the Department of Labor and Industry; and imposing penalties.

PRINTER'S NO.   361

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                        SENATE BILL
                        No. 406
                                               Session of
                                                 2025

     INTRODUCED BY TARTAGLIONE, SCHWANK, SAVAL, FONTANA, COLLETT,
        KEARNEY, STREET, HUGHES, HAYWOOD, COSTA, KANE AND
        L. WILLIAMS, MARCH 10, 2025

     REFERRED TO LABOR AND INDUSTRY, MARCH 10, 2025


                                    AN ACT
 1   Providing for regulation of the meat packing and food processing
 2      industry by creating facility health and safety committees in
 3      the workplace; establishing the industry workers' rights
 4      coordinator within the Department of Labor and Industry; and
 5      imposing penalties.
 6      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 7   hereby enacts as follows:
 8   Section 1.   Short title.
 9      This act shall be known and may be cited as the Meat Packing
10   and Food Processing Protection Act.
11   Section 2.   Definitions.
12      The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
13   have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
14   context clearly indicates otherwise:
15      "Department."    The Department of Labor and Industry of the
16   Commonwealth.
17      "Employee."    An individual who is employed by an employer.
18      "Employer."    A business that employs 100 or more employees at
19   a single facility, including independent contractors and
 1   employees hired by a temporary hiring or staffing agency located
 2   in this Commonwealth, and meets all of the following criteria:
 3          (1)   The business is any of the following:
 4                (i)    Licensed under the act of July 9, 1968 (P.L.304,
 5          No.151), known as the Pennsylvania Meat and Poultry
 6          Hygiene Law of 1968.
 7                (ii)    A food establishment subject to 3 Pa.C.S. Ch.
 8          57 Subch. B (relating to food safety).
 9                (iii)    Subject to inspection by the Food Safety
10          Inspection Service under 21 U.S.C. Ch. 12 (relating to
11          meat inspection) or 15 (relating to egg products
12          inspection).
13          (2)   The business is registered as a food facility
14      under Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness
15      and Response Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-188, 116 Stat. 594).
16      "Facility."      The location of an employer where the employees
17   perform job-related duties or the following occurs, but shall
18   not be limited to the following:
19          (1)   slaughtering or butchering;
20          (2)   meat canning, meat packing or meat manufacturing;
21          (3)   poultry canning, packing or manufacturing;
22          (4)   pet food manufacturing;
23          (5)   egg production;
24          (6)   processing of meat packing products;
25          (7)   commercial packaging;
26          (8)   the making, cooking, mixing, processing, bottling,
27      baking, canning, freezing, packing or rendering of meat
28      products; or
29          (9)   the making, cooking, mixing, processing, bottling,
30      baking, canning, freezing, packing or rendering of products

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 1      intended for human consumption.
 2      "Facility health and safety committee" or "committee."      A
 3   committee authorized and established under section 5.
 4      "Industry workers' rights coordinator" or "coordinator."        The
 5   coordinator appointed by the secretary under section 5(j).
 6      "Secretary."     The Secretary of Labor and Industry of the
 7   Commonwealth.
 8   Section 3.     Training provided by employer.
 9      (a)   Language.--Upon hire, an employer must provide to an
10   employee in the language that the employee speaks, if at least
11   5% of the employer's workforce speaks the language, information
12   on the following:
13            (1)   Health risks directly associated with the duties of
14      employment, including repetitive strain injuries,
15      musculoskeletal disorders and respiratory hazards under 29
16      U.S.C. Ch. 15 (relating to occupational safety and health)
17      and related Federal regulations.
18            (2)   The employee's right to seek medical care for
19      injuries that occur as a result of employment under the act
20      of June 2, 1915 (P.L.736, No.338), known as the Workers'
21      Compensation Act.
22            (3)   A summary of the rights and requirements under 29
23      U.S.C. Ch. 15 and related Federal regulations.
24            (4)   The facility health and safety committee established
25      under section 5.
26            (5)   The employee's right to seek workers' compensation
27      for work-related injuries.
28      (b)   Training provided.--
29            (1)   An employer shall provide worker safety training to
30      new employees during normal working hours and at the standard

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 1      rate of compensation.
 2            (2)   Training shall be available in languages spoken by
 3      at least 5% of employees.
 4            (3)   Training shall be provided without a penalty imposed
 5      by the employer.
 6            (4)   An employee shall have the right to additional
 7      training, upon request, within 30 days of the employee's hire
 8      date.
 9            (5)   An employee shall be paid the regular rate of pay
10      during training.
11   Section 4.     Emergency medical transportation benefits.
12      If an employee is injured or becomes ill at the facility as a
13   result of duties associated with the employee's employment and
14   requires immediate emergency medical attention that cannot be
15   acquired from an on-site licensed medical professional, the
16   employer shall pay for out-of-pocket expenses not covered by an
17   insurance plan associated with the emergency medical
18   transportation.
19   Section 5.     Facility health and safety committee.
20      (a)   Establishment.--An employer shall establish and
21   administer a joint labor-management facility health and safety
22   committee to help reduce the risk of injury and unsafe
23   conditions at the facility.
24      (b)   Committee membership.--
25            (1)   The committee membership shall represent all primary
26      operations of the workplace.
27            (2)   The committees shall be composed of a minimum of two
28      employer-representatives and a minimum of two employee-
29      representatives. If more than two employees are required to
30      represent each office of the workplace, the employer shall

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 1    require a minimum number of employees from each office to be
 2    represented on the committee.
 3          (3)   Employer-representatives must be individuals who,
 4    regardless of job title or labor organization affiliation,
 5    based upon an examination of that individual's authority or
 6    responsibility, perform one or more of the following duties:
 7                (i)     Select or hire an employee.
 8                (ii)     Remove or terminate an employee.
 9                (iii)     Direct the manner of employee performance.
10                (iv)     Control an employee.
11          (4)   Employee-representatives must be individuals who
12    perform services for an employer for valuable consideration
13    and do not possess the authority or responsibility described
14    in paragraph (3).
15          (5)   An individual may not function as both an employer-
16    representative and an employee-representative.
17          (6)   If a collective bargaining agreement is in place at
18    the facility:
19                (i)    Paragraph (4) shall not apply.
20                (ii)    The union may select the employee-
21          representatives.
22                (iii)    Employee-representatives may be union
23          representatives who are not employees at the facility.
24    (c)   Committee formation.--
25          (1)   An employer that has only one workplace within this
26    Commonwealth shall form a single workplace safety committee
27    at the workplace.
28          (2)   An employer that has more than one workplace within
29    this Commonwealth shall form separate and individual safety
30    committees at each facility within this Commonwealth.

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 1            (3)   The committee shall be composed of at least an equal
 2      number of employer-representatives and employee-
 3      representatives.
 4            (4)   The committee shall establish procedures that retain
 5      a core group of experienced members to serve on the committee
 6      at all times.
 7            (5)   Employee-representatives of the committees shall:
 8                  (i)    Be permitted to take reasonable time from work
 9            to perform committee duties without loss of pay or
10            benefits.
11                  (ii)   Join the committee for a continuous term of one
12            year from the date of the first meeting attended.
13      (d)   Committee responsibilities.--The facility health and
14   safety committee shall have the following responsibilities:
15            (1)   Represent the accident and illness prevention
16      concerns of employees for the employer.
17            (2)   Review the employer's hazard detection and accident
18      and illness prevention programs and formulate written
19      proposals.
20            (3)   Establish procedures for periodic workplace
21      inspections by the committee for the purpose of locating and
22      identifying health and safety hazards. The locations and
23      identity of hazards shall be documented in writing, and the
24      committee shall make proposals to the employer regarding
25      correction of the hazards.
26            (4)   Conduct a review of incidents resulting in work-
27      related deaths, injuries and illnesses and of complaints
28      regarding health and safety hazards made by committee members
29      or other employees.
30            (5)   Conduct follow-up evaluations of newly implemented

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 1    health and safety equipment or health and safety procedures
 2    to assess effectiveness.
 3          (6)    Establish a system to allow the committee members to
 4    obtain safety-related proposals, reports of hazards or other
 5    information directly from individuals involved in the
 6    operation of the workplace.
 7          (7)    Develop operating procedures, including rules or
 8    bylaws prescribing the committee's duties.
 9          (8)    Develop and maintain membership lists.
10          (9)    Develop a written agenda for meetings.
11          (10)    Maintain committee meeting attendance lists.
12          (11)    Take and maintain minutes of committee meetings
13    that the employer shall review. Copies of minutes shall be
14    posted or made available for all employees and shall be sent
15    to each committee member.
16          (12)    Ensure that the reports, evaluations and proposals
17    of the committee become part of the minutes of the meeting
18    which shall include:
19                 (i)     Inspection reports.
20                 (ii)     Reports on specific hazards and corrective
21          measures taken.
22                 (iii)     Reports on workplace injuries or illnesses.
23                 (iv)     Management responses to committee reports.
24    (e)   Committee meetings.--
25          (1)    A quorum of committee members shall meet at least
26    monthly. A quorum shall consist of at least two-thirds of
27    committee members being present.
28          (2)    All decisions made by the committee at a meeting
29    shall be made by a majority vote.
30    (f)   Committee member training.--The employer shall provide

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 1   adequate, annual training programs for each committee member.
 2   Committee member training shall, at a minimum, address:
 3            (1)   Hazard detection and inspection.
 4            (2)   Accident and illness prevention and investigation,
 5      including substance abuse awareness and prevention training,
 6      safety committee structure and operation.
 7            (3)   Other health and safety concerns specific to the
 8      business of the employer.
 9      (g)   Committee training records.--An employer shall provide
10   verification of trainer qualifications to the industry workers'
11   rights coordinator appointed under subsection (j) and supply, as
12   necessary, documentation supporting individual trainer
13   qualifications. The employer shall maintain written records of
14   facility health and safety committee training, including:
15            (1)   The names of committee members trained.
16            (2)   The dates of training.
17            (3)   The training time period.
18            (4)   The training methodology.
19            (5)   The names and credentials of personnel conducting
20      the training.
21            (6)   The names of training organizations sponsoring
22      training, if applicable.
23            (7)   The training location.
24            (8)   The training topics.
25      (h)   Interference prohibited.--No employer may interfere with
26   the selection of employee-representatives to serve on the
27   committee or the ability for employee-representatives to perform
28   the duties authorized under this section.
29      (i)   Loss of pay prohibited during training.--An employer
30   shall permit committee members to attend a training without loss

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 1   of pay.
 2      (j)     Industry workers' rights coordinator.--
 3             (1)   The secretary shall appoint an industry workers'
 4      rights coordinator to the department to help enforce this
 5      section.
 6             (2)   The coordinator shall review and investigate
 7      complaints and make recommendations on worker health and
 8      safety standards of employers in this Commonwealth.
 9             (3)   An employer shall provide the coordinator full
10      access to facility operations at times that employees are
11      performing job-related duties at the facility.
12             (4)   The coordinator, either on the coordinator's
13      initiative or in response to a complaint, shall investigate
14      an employer's compliance with this section.
15   Section 6.      Anti-retaliation.
16      An employer may not penalize, discriminate against, dismiss
17   or discharge an employee for exercising any of the employee's
18   rights under this act.
19   Section 7.      Enforcement and penalties.
20      Upon investigation and a determination by the department that
21   an employer failed to comply with this act, the department may
22   assess an administrative penalty of $500 per day until the
23   failure is cured. If the employer does not cure the failure
24   within 10 days, the department may assess an administrative
25   penalty of not more than $10,000 per day for every day exceeding
26   10 days.
27   Section 8.      Regulations.
28      The department may promulgate regulations as necessary to
29   carry out the provisions of this act.
30   Section 9.      Collective bargaining agreements.

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 1      Nothing in this act shall be construed to diminish the
 2   rights, privileges or remedies of an employee under a collective
 3   bargaining agreement. The provisions of this act may be waived
 4   by a collective bargaining agreement provided that, for the
 5   waiver to be valid, the waiver explicitly references the section
 6   of this act that is waived. Upon mutual agreement with a union
 7   currently representing or negotiating the terms of a contract
 8   for representation of the employees at the facility, an employer
 9   may opt out of the provisions of this act. The mutual agreement
10   shall be in writing and shall be binding against the employer
11   and the union to the full extent of a collective bargaining
12   agreement.
13   Section 10.   Abrogation of regulations.
14      Any and all regulations are abrogated to the extent of any
15   inconsistency with this act.
16   Section 11.   Effective date.
17      This act shall take effect in 90 days.




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