Bill Text: IA HF155 | 2019-2020 | 88th General Assembly | Introduced

Iowa House Bill 155 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to unfair or discriminatory employment practices based upon issues relating to reproductive health, and including effective date provisions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-22 - Subcommittee reassigned: Upmeyer, Dolecheck and Hunter. H.J. 121. [HF155 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2019-HF155-Introduced.html

House File 155 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 155 BY BENNETT , HUNTER , RUNNING-MARQUARDT , OLDSON , ANDERSON , DONAHUE , and EHLERT A BILL FOR An Act relating to unfair or discriminatory employment 1 practices based upon issues relating to reproductive health, 2 and including effective date provisions. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1931YH (2) 88 pf/rh

H.F. 155 Section 1. Section 216.2, subsection 15, Code 2019, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 15. “Unfair practice” or “discriminatory practice” means 3 those practices specified as unfair or discriminatory in 4 sections 216.6 , 216.6A , 216.6B, 216.7 , 216.8 , 216.8A , 216.9 , 5 216.10 , 216.11 , and 216.11A . 6 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 216.6B Additional unfair or 7 discriminatory employment practices —— reproductive health. 8 1. It shall be an unfair or discriminatory practice for any 9 employer to do any of the following: 10 a. Take any adverse employment action against an employee 11 based on the use of any drug, device, or medical service 12 related to reproductive health by the employee or the 13 employee’s spouse or dependent. 14 b. Require an employee to sign a waiver or other document 15 which purports to deny an employee, or an employee’s spouse or 16 dependents, the right to make the employee’s or the employee’s 17 spouse or dependents own reproductive health care decisions, 18 including whether to use any particular drug, device, or 19 medical service. 20 c. Take any adverse employment action in retaliation 21 against an employee for asserting rights or remedies under this 22 section. 23 2. An employer who provides an employee handbook to the 24 employer’s employees shall include in the handbook notice of 25 the employee’s rights and remedies under this section. 26 3. For purposes of this section, “adverse employment action” 27 means termination, demotion or refusal to promote or advance, 28 loss of career specialty, reassignment to a different shift, 29 reduction of wages or benefits, refusal to provide training 30 opportunities or transfer to a different department, adverse 31 administrative action, or any other penalty or disciplinary or 32 retaliatory action. 33 4. This section shall not apply to any of the following: 34 a. Any bona fide religious institution with respect to any 35 -1- LSB 1931YH (2) 88 pf/rh 1/ 3

H.F. 155 qualifications the institution may impose based on religion, 1 sexual orientation, or gender identity when such qualifications 2 are related to a bona fide religious purpose. 3 b. Any employer who regularly employs less than four 4 individuals. For purposes of this paragraph, individuals who 5 are members of the employer’s family shall not be counted as 6 employees. 7 Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE UPON ENACTMENT. This Act, being deemed of 8 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment. 9 EXPLANATION 10 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 11 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 12 This bill relates to unfair or discriminatory employment 13 practices based upon reproductive health decisions. 14 The bill specifies that it is an unfair or discriminatory 15 practice for any employer to do any of the following: 16 1. Take any adverse employment action against an employee 17 based on the use of any drug, device, or medical service 18 related to reproductive health by the employee or the 19 employee’s spouse or dependent; 20 2. Require an employee to sign a waiver or other document 21 which purports to deny an employee, or an employee’s spouse or 22 dependents, the right to make the employee’s or the employee’s 23 spouse or dependents own reproductive health care decisions, 24 including whether to use any particular drug, device, or 25 medical service; or 26 3. Take any adverse employment action in retaliation 27 against an employee for asserting rights or remedies under the 28 bill. 29 The bill requires an employer who provides an employee 30 handbook to the employer’s employees to include in the handbook 31 notice of the employee’s rights and remedies under the bill. 32 The bill defines “adverse employment action” for the 33 purposes of the bill; and provides that the bill does not apply 34 to any bona fide religious institution with respect to any 35 -2- LSB 1931YH (2) 88 pf/rh 2/ 3

H.F. 155 qualifications the institution may impose based on religion, 1 sexual orientation, or gender identity when such qualifications 2 are related to a bona fide religious purpose or to any employer 3 who regularly employs less than four individuals. 4 The bill takes effect upon enactment. 5 -3- LSB 1931YH (2) 88 pf/rh 3/ 3