About This Annual Report
Approximately 15 years ago, Congress passed the Congressional Accountability Act (CAA) with overwhelming bipartisan support. The CAA brings Congress and its agencies under the ambit of workplace rights, occupational safety and health, accessibility, and fair labor standards statutes that apply to most private and public employers. Prior to the passage of the CAA, Congress had exempted itself from the reach of these laws, affording employees no statutory remedy for their violation.
In an effort to bring accountability to Congress and its agencies and to provide an avenue of redress for employees, the CAA established the Office of Compliance (OOC) to administer a dispute resolution program for the resolution of claims by Congressional employees under the CAA; to carry out an education program to inform Congressional Members, employing offices, and Congressional employees about their rights and obligations under the CAA; to inspect Congressional facilities for compliance with safety and health and accessibility laws; and to operate under a Board of Directors that is responsible for, among other things, promulgating regulations and making recommendations for changes to the CAA to keep Congress accountable under the workplace laws that apply to private and public employers.
The CAA was drafted in a manner that demonstrates that Congress intended that there be an ongoing, vigilant review of the workplace laws that apply to Congress and a review of whether Congressional employees are indeed making claims under the CAA, accessing the services of the OOC, and able to make claims against their employers in a similar manner as Federal Executive Branch and private sector employees.
