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A bill pushed by the state AFL-CIO through the Indiana General Assembly is meeting strong opposition from business groups.
The Indiana House of Representatives passed HB 1487, a bill introduced by Rep. Linda Lawson (D-Hammond) to address wage discrimination, on a party-line vote of 51-45. Local representatives said provisions in the bill would create havoc in the workplace and not reward more productive workers for their superior productivity.
"It's going to be a nightmare to administer and it's going to be unfair to workers who do a better job," said Rep. David Wolkins, (R-Winona Lake). "It doesn't allow an employer to pay people who do the best work more. It's unbelievable the chaos this will create in the workplace."
He added the legislation was pushed through by the House Democrat leaders to be used as a bargaining chip later in this session of the General Assembly.
The bill calls on the Indiana Department of Workforce Development to survey wage rates in different regions throughout the state, then use that information to determine the average wage rate for each job classification.
It would drive up the cost of labor and cost working Hoosiers jobs, according to Indiana Chamber of Commerce President Christopher LaMothe.
"Few people know how precarious the economy is in the state," he said. "We have fundamental weaknesses that seriously undermine Indiana's ability to attract or create high skill, high wage jobs.
"The people of this state need to know that labor leadership is predominately focused on forcing legislation and public policy that destroys Indiana's already weakened ability to create jobs. These attacks on business and our economy ultimately will negatively impact their rank and file membership," he said.
Steve Henderson, spokesperson for the Indiana AFL-CIO, said the bill his union is supporting is merely an effort to see that equal work receives equal pay.
"There is similar language in the minimum wage law, so we're only asking that the state really enforce the laws that are only on the books," he said. "It's always been an AFL-CIO policy that there should be equal pay for equal work."
Henderson disputes LaMothe's assertion the bill will cost workers their jobs if it passes. He said the assertion is frequently made by the business lobby on the question of wage issues.
"The Chamber said the same things about this bill as it did about raising the minimum wage to $5.15 per hour," he said. "Have we seen a decrease in jobs with the higher minimum wage? No, we've seen an increase."
Despite the passage by the House, Henderson said, he does not believe the bill will be passed out of the Senate.
"There is no chance of this bill being heard by the Senate Labor Committee," he said. "The only chance of it being heard would be if the bill was rewritten by the Senate Republicans."
