Hoyer Statement on Efforts to Strengthen Workplace Protections for House Employees

WASHINGTON, DC – House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today:

“Last month I asked the Committee on House Administration, the House Office of Compliance, and the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to work together to strengthen protections for House employees in the event that they believe they are a victim of, or a witness to, workplace or sexual harassment or an ethics violation.

“In the past few days, I have received positive and constructive replies from the Committee on House Administration and the House Office of Compliance. Among other actions, both the Committee and the Office of Compliance are working together to increase communication with and education of House employees, review of the Congressional Accountability Act to look for any actions that need to be taken to strengthen employee’s ability to report inappropriate conduct in the workplace. In addition, Chairman Brady agreed with the suggestion to update the New Member Orientation to ‘include a more focused discussion on the responsibilities of Members as employers,’ so that they are equipped with the information they need to effectively manage a workplace.

“To be clear, I do not consider my effort to strengthen the workplace rights of House employees to be concluded with the assurances House Administration and OOC have given me. I will continue to closely monitor this critical issue, and expect that the Standards Committee will, when its investigation into the Massa matter is concluded, update its own procedures in order to assure that employees have a trusted place to turn when they are concerned about their workplace environment.”


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