Effective January 1, 2025,
HB 4127 (2024) provides new protections to employees of covered warehouse distribution centers.
Generally, covered employers will need to provide each employee with written documentation summarizing any quota to which the employee is subject.[1] Employers may not take adverse action[2] against an employee for failure to meet a quota, unless the employee has received written documentation summarizing the quota requirements.
The written documentation summarizing any quota must include:
- The quantified number of tasks to be performed, or materials to be produced or handled, within a defined time period; and
- A description of the potential consequences resulting from the employee's failure to meet the applicable quota.
A covered employer must provide written documentation summarizing any quota in the language the employer regularly uses to communicate with the employee to:
- A new employee at the time of hire;
- An existing employee within two business days after the employer changes a quota; and
- An employee when an employer takes an adverse employment action for failing to meet the quota.
Employees (or former employees) who feel an adverse action resulted from a failure to meet a quota have a right to receive information regarding quota requirements and any work speed data collected and maintained to evaluate the employee’s performance regarding the quota) for the 90 days preceding the employee’s request (or termination).
Notice and records required under this law do not apply to an employer who is subject to a collective bargaining agreement:
- By which employees are subject to a performance evaluation metric that is subject to review and negotiation according to the terms of the agreement; and
- That provides a substantially equivalent right to request records.
The Bureau of Labor and Industries will accept
complaints alleging violations of these requirements.
Key definitions
- Warehouse Distribution Center
- A “warehouse distribution center” means an establishment engaged in any services relating to warehousing and storage, merchant wholesale of durable and nondurable goods and retailing using electronic shopping and mail-order houses.[3]
- Exemptions from the definition of a covered “warehouse distribution center” apply to farm product warehousing and storage, refrigerated warehousing and storage, merchant wholesale of professional medical, dental and hospital equipment and supplies, drugs and druggists’ sundries, couriers and express delivery services, merchant wholesale distribution of carbonated beverages, wine and distilled alcoholic beverages, beer and ale.[4]
- Covered Employers
- Coverage applies to an employer who has either 100 or more employees at a warehouse distribution center or 1,000 or more employees at any number of warehouse distribution centers in Oregon. Note: employment includes direct or indirect employment, through an agent or any other person, including through the services of a third-party, temporary services or staffing agency or any other similar entity.
- Covered Employees
- Protections apply to minimum wage and overtime eligible employees of a covered employer who work at a warehouse distribution center but who are not a driver or courier to or from the warehouse distribution center.
The Law
HB 4127 (2024)
[1] Written documentation requirements become operative January 31, 2025, 30 days after the law goes into effect.
[2] Adverse action in this context includes negative impacts on the terms and conditions of someone's employment like demotions, reassignments, shift changes, discipline or termination.
[3] Specifically: (A) Warehousing and storage, as that term is used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 493. (B) Merchant wholesale of durable goods, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 423. (C) Merchant wholesale of nondurable goods, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 424. (D) Retailing using electronic shopping and mail-order houses, as those terms are used in the 2017 North American Industry Classification System code 454110.
[4] Specifically: (A) Farm product warehousing and storage, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 493130. (B) Refrigerated warehousing and storage, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 493120. (C) Merchant wholesale of professional medical, dental and hospital equipment and supplies, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 423450. (D) Merchant wholesale distribution of drugs and druggists’ sundries, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 424210. (E) Couriers and express delivery services, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 492110. (F) Merchant wholesale distribution of carbonated beverages, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 424490. (G) Merchant wholesale distribution of wine and distilled alcoholic beverages, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 424820. (H) Merchant wholesale distribution of beer and ale, as those terms are used in the 2022 North American Industry Classification System code 424810.