The Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (CAA) (), the first piece of legislation passed by the

104th United States Congress The 104th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 19 ...

, applied several

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

, and workplace safety and health laws to the U.S. Congress and its associated agencies, requiring them to follow many of the same employment and workplace safety laws applied to businesses and the federal government. Previously, agencies in the

legislative branch A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

had been exempt from these laws. The act also established a dispute resolution procedure as an alternative to filing claims in federal court. The act is administered and enforced by the United States Congress Office of Compliance. The Congressional Accountability Act was passed by vote of 98–1 in the Senate and 390–0 in the House. The act was amended by the passage of the Office of Compliance Administrative and Technical Corrections Act of 2015.(, )

Specific laws applied

The CAA applies twelve specific laws to the U.S. Congress and its associated agencies, giving various rights to the 30,000 employees in the legislative branch. *

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

. Offices in the legislative branch must make their public services, programs, activities, and places of public accommodation accessible to members of the public who have a disability. * Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. Employees 40 years old or older cannot be discriminated against in personnel actions because of their age. *

Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute The Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (FSLMRS aka "the Statute") is a federal law which establishes collective bargaining rights for most employees of the federal government in the United States. It was established under Title VII o ...

. Certain legislative branch employees have the right to join a union and collectively bargain with an employing office. *

Rehabilitation Act of 1973 The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 () is a United States federal law, codified at et seq. The principal sponsor of the bill was Rep. John Brademas (D-IN-3). The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 replaces preexisting laws (collectively referred to as the V ...

. Employees cannot be discriminated against in personnel actions because of a disability, and offices may be required to accommodate the special needs of a person with a disability. *Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Employees cannot be harassed or discriminated against in personnel actions because of their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. *

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) is a United States labor law that creates the right to a minimum wage, and " time-and-a-half" overtime pay when people work over forty hours a week. It also prohibits employment of minors in "opp ...

. Employees must get paid at least the current minimum wage, and certain employees are entitled to overtime pay. *

Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a United States labor law requiring covered employers to provide employees with job-protected, unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. The FMLA was a major part of President Bill C ...

. Employees are entitled to 12 weeks of leave from work for certain family and medical reasons. * Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1989. Employees are entitled to be given advance notice of an office closing or mass layoff. * Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Workplaces in the legislative branch must be free of hazards that are likely to cause death or serious injury. *

Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 The Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 (EPPA) is a United States federal law that generally prevents employers from using polygraph (lie detector) tests, either for pre-employment screening or during the course of employment, with certain ex ...

. With limited exceptions, employees cannot be required to take

polygraph A polygraph, often incorrectly referred to as a lie detector test, is a device or procedure that measures and records several physiological indicators such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while a person is asked ...

(

lie detector A polygraph, often incorrectly referred to as a lie detector test, is a device or procedure that measures and records several physiological indicators such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while a person is asked an ...

) tests. *Veterans' employment and reemployment rights in Chapter 43 of

Title 38 of the United States Code Title 38 of the United States Code outlines the role of Veterans' Benefits in the United States Code. * Part I: General Provisions * Part II: General Benefits * Part III: Readjustment and Related Benefits * Part IV: General Administrative Provisi ...

, and amended in 1998 to include portions of the

Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

. Employees cannot be discriminated against for past or present duty in the

uniformed services Uniformed services is an abstract term that are generally bodies of people in employment of a state who wear a distinct uniform that differentiates them from the public and private sector. Their purpose is to maintain the peace, security, safety, ...

, and those who leave work to perform uniformed service are entitled to be reemployed in their old job after a service obligation ends.

Criticism

Due to revelations related to Harvey Weinstein's alleged sexual offenses and other sexual victims, the Congress has been criticized for lack of regular civil rights protections for its workers against sexual harassment by

Members Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

. Many have advocated for changes in the Congressional Accountability Act in light of these scandals.Berry, John V., Time to Fix the Congressional Accountability Act (Dec. 2017)
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References

External links

Full text of the lawOffice of Compliance and CAA fact sheet
(PDF)
2007 Amendment
{{Authority control United States federal government administration legislation Acts of the 104th United States Congress