U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) looks to speed up collective bargaining negotiations for a first contract between private employers and unions via new legislation. On March 4, Sen. Hawley introduced the Faster Labor Contracts Act. The bill proposes an amendment to Section 8(d) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) that would, it says:

• Amend the NLRA to require that after workers have voted to form a union, employers must begin negotiating with the new union within 10 days 
• Provide that if no agreement is reached within 90 days, the dispute will be referred to mediation
• Stipulate that if mediation fails within 30 days, or additional periods agreed upon by the parties, the dispute will be referred to binding arbitration to secure an initial contract
• Commission a Government Accountability Office report on average workplace time-to-contract one year after enactment.

Section 8(d) of the NLRA requires the employer and the union to bargain in good faith over employees' wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment, and states “but such obligation does not compel either party to agree to a proposal or require the making of a concession.” The NLRA does not impose a time limit for the parties to reach an agreement. According to Bloomberg Law's statistics, it takes the parties on average 458 days to bargain a first contract. 

If passed, the Faster Labor Contracts Act will affect employers and unions alike. Most notably, the bill ignores both the union's and the employer's rights to object to the results of an election, test certification of a unit, and have the opportunity to litigate those issues. It is not clear how those rights – also provided by the NLRA – would stand in light of the proposed 10-day start time. By setting a negotiation timeline, the bill may also force both parties to concede to unfavorable terms, placing limits on the parties' rights to freely contract without outside intervention. 

The bill is bipartisan and cosponsored by Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.). The bill is also backed by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.