Omnibus employment measure clears final round

A bill containing several labor measures was passed by lawmakers April 10.

LB921, sponsored by Sumner Sen. Teresa Ibach, requires businesses that experience a closure or a mass layoff event lasting longer than six months to notify employees and the state Department of Labor at least 90 days in advance of such event, if it will affect 100 or more full-time employees

It also amends the Non-English-Speaking Workers Protection Act to require businesses to provide an interpreter and referral agent if 5% of their staff speaks the same non-English language. Referral agents are required to develop and maintain a list of community services and assist employees in attempting to obtain those services.

LB921 includes the amended provisions of the following bills:
• LB308, also introduced by Ibach, which requires DOL to create and maintain a registry for health care staffing agencies operating in Nebraska;
• LB544, sponsored by Norfolk Sen. Robert Dover, which requires individuals receiving unemployment benefits to respond to an interview request or a job offer for suitable employment within one week or lose a week of benefits; and
• LB1170, introduced by Fremont Sen. Dave Wordekemper, which allows a county to file more than one state claim for a single correctional institution incident if the threshold amount is met for each claim, and expands the definition of what constitutes a death for purposes of the Line of Duty Compensation Act.

Sen. Tony Sorrentino of Elkhorn offered an amendment during select file debate April 7 to include the amended provisions of Lincoln Sen. Eliot Bostar’s LB813.

Those provisions change the definition of who is classified as an independent contractor and excluded from the state’s Employment Security Law. The amendment specifies that one of the requirements to be classified as a marketplace network contractor — that an individual not perform work at a physical business location operated by a marketplace network platform, such as DoorDash — does not apply if the physical business is located in a metropolitan or primary class city.

Omaha is the state’s only metropolitan class city and Lincoln is the only primary class city.

Sorrentino said DoorDash delivery drivers already are considered independent contractors in Nebraska and the amendment simply expands the classification to include drivers who shop for such deliveries at an affiliated brick-and-mortar store.

Blair Sen. Ben Hansen supported Sorrentino’s amendment, saying “overburdensome” regulations — such as minimum wage and paid leave requirements — have led to more automated business models. The amendment would allow businesses to adjust their service models based on market needs, he said.

“We have to open ourselves up to the idea of [letting] the market decide … how they can best accomplish their business,” Hansen said.

Sen. Jane Raybould of Lincoln spoke in opposition. She said the amendment’s “broad” definition could apply to individuals employed by DoorDash who work inside a physical location to stock and provide assistance to delivery drivers.

She also expressed concern that the change could lead other businesses that provide pickup and delivery options, such as grocery stores and other retailers, to classify their workers as independent contractors.

“[It] is a bridge too far,” Raybould said.

The Sorrentino amendment was adopted on a vote of 30-8.

Bostar then brought a floor amendment to address opponents’ concerns and clarify that individuals classified as part-time employees under the Employment Security Law are not classified as independent contractors under his measure.

After adopting the Bostar amendment 29-1, lawmakers advanced LB921 to final reading 34-9.

The bill passed April 10 on a 37-12 vote.