Committee of the Whole Public Hearing

COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20004 CHAIRMAN PHIL MENDELSON COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE ANNOUNCES A PUBLIC HEARING on Bill 23-965, “Displaced Workers Right to Reinstatement and Retention Amendment Act of 2020” on Wednesday, November 4, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. Live via Zoom Video Conference Broadcast Council Channel 13 (Cable Television Providers) DC Council Website (www.dccouncil.us) Council Chairman Phil Mendelson announces a public hearing before the Committee of the Whole on Bill 23-965, “Displaced Workers Right to Reinstatement and Retention Amendment Act of 2020.” The hearing will be held Wednesday, November 4, 2020, 9:00 a.m. via Zoom video conference. The stated purpose of Bill 23-965 is to amend the Displaced Workers Protection Act of 1994 to ensure that eligible employees who have been displaced by COVID-19 have the opportunity to be reinstated once their employer reopens after the current global pandemic. Industries, such as the hotel industry, have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving many of their employees without jobs for the foreseeable future. While these employees are unionized, their collective bargaining agreement only provides for an 18-month callback period from when their hotels closed (in this case March/April 2020). Given that many hotels are not set to reopen until the pandemic subsides, which will be well into 2021, and that it is predicted that it will take until mid-2022 before the industry largely recovers and is back to near capacity, the 18-month callback will have ended, leaving many eligible employees without any job reinstatement or retention protection. Bill 23-965 seeks to rectify this issue. Those who wish to testify must email the Committee of the Whole at cow@dccouncil.us, or call Christina Setlow, Deputy Committee Director, at (202) 724-4865, and to provide your name, address, telephone number, organizational affiliation and title (if any) by the close of business Monday, November 2, 2020. Witnesses who anticipate needing spoken language interpretation, or require sign language interpretation, are requested to inform the Committee office of the need as soon as possible but no later than five business days before the proceeding. We will make every effort to fulfill timely requests, although alternatives may be offered. Requests received in less than five business days may not be fulfilled. Due to the COVID-19 public health emergency declaration, the hearing will be conducted virtually on the Internet utilizing Zoom video conferencing technology. Because of this, written or transcribed testimony from the public is highly encouraged and will be taken by email or voice mail. Testimony may be submitted in writing to cow@dccouncil.us or may be left by voice mail (up to 3 minutes) – which will be transcribed – by calling (202) 430-6948. Testimony received by 5pm on Monday, November 2, 2020 will be posted publicly to http://www.chairmanmendelson.com/circulation prior to the hearing. If you are unable to testify at the hearing, written statements are encouraged and will be made a part of the official record. This hearing will be limited to two hours. Written statements should be submitted to the Committee of the Whole, Council of the District of Columbia, Suite 410 of the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20004. The record will close at 5:00 p.m. on November 18, 2020.