House Passes Anti-Business Labor Bill Strongly Opposed by NAHB
This post was updated on March 9, 2021.
The House on March 9 approved legislation strongly opposed by NAHB that contains dozens of sweeping labor law revisions that would negatively affect the construction labor market at a time of critical skilled worker shortages.
The bill is expected to die in the Senate.
H.R. 842, the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, would expand employers’ liability for the labor practices of subcontractors and third-party vendors and narrow the circumstances under which an individual can work as an independent contractor — effectively gutting the contracting business model that serves as the foundation of the residential construction sector.
NAHB sent a letter to the full House designating a vote in opposition to H.R. 842 as a “key vote” because of its importance to the housing industry. This organized labor “wish list” bill resurrects bad policies that have previously been rejected by Congress and courts alike, including:
- Eliminating right-to-work protections nationwide;
- Stripping employer and employee free choice and privacy in union elections; and
- Curbing opportunities for independent work and subcontracting.
NAHB’s letter opposing the bill said that the “nation is currently facing a housing affordability crisis which will only worsen if Congress promulgates misguided policies that force the labor market to contract and inflate the costs of home construction.”
Latest from NAHBNow
Aug 01, 2025
Meet at Home with Your Members of CongressNAHB members across the nation can build on the success of the June Legislative Conference by meeting with their lawmakers in their home districts in August to discuss key issues that affect the home building industry.
Jul 31, 2025
How Home Builders Beat the Labor Crunch with This Fast Financing PlanStruggling to secure labor can force builders to make tough decisions: Do you delay a project? Sacrifice profits? Or turn down new opportunities? But smart builders don’t just react — they adapt their financing strategy to meet labor challenges head-on.
Latest Economic News
Jul 31, 2025
Personal Income Rises 0.3% in JunePersonal income increased by 0.3% in June, following a 0.4% dip in May, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The gains in personal income were largely driven by higher wages and social benefits.
Jul 31, 2025
Housing Share of GDP: Second Quarter 2025Housing’s share of the economy registered 16.3% in the second quarter of 2025, according to the advance estimate of GDP produced by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This reading is unchanged from a revised level of 16.3% in the first quarter and is the same as the share one year ago.
Jul 30, 2025
Fed Remains on Pause AgainAt the conclusion of its July meeting, the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy committee once again held the federal funds rate constant at a top rate of 4.5%. However, two members of the committee dissented from the decision (Fed Board Governors Waller and Bowman), the largest number of dissenting votes since 1993.