H. B. 4343
(By Delegates Poling, M., Paxton, Fragale, Perry,
Shaver, Stowers, Walker, D., Pethtel, Smith,
Lawrence and Moye)
[Introduced February 4, 2010; referred to the
Committee on Education.]
A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §18-10P-1, §18-10P-2,
§18-10P-3, §18-10P-4 and §18-10P-5, all relating to increasing
the awareness and understanding of labor history and the
contributions of workers to the state, nation and world;
designating the week following the Labor Day Holiday as Labor
History Week for the State of West Virginia; requiring
integration of instruction of labor history into the existing
public school curriculum; legislative findings; and defined
terms.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §18-10P-1, §18-10P-2,
§18-10P-3, §18-10P-4 and §18-10P-5, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 10P. LABOR HISTORY WEEK.
§l8-10P-1. Short title.
This article is known and may be cited as the "Labor History
Week Act."
§l8-1OP-2. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds that:
(1) According to the United States Department of Labor Bureau
of Labor Statistics, in 2008, one hundred twelve thousand West
Virginians were represented by unions;
(2) Some of the most significant labor events in the history
of the United States happened in West Virginia and our state has a
rich labor history;
(3) The first Monday in September is recognized nationally and
in our state as the Labor Day Holiday; and
(4) By designating the week following the Labor Day Holiday as
Labor History Week, students and the public will have the
opportunity to learn about labor history, collective bargaining,
labor management relations and the contributions that workers have
made to society and the workplace.
§18-10P-3. Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to increase awareness and
understanding of labor history and the contributions of workers to
the state, nation and world by designating the annual observance of
the week following the Labor Day Holiday as Labor History Week.
§18-10P-4. Definitions.
(a) "Labor history" means the people, events and timelines of
the development of workers' rights, labor management relations and collective bargaining. Labor history includes, but is not limited
to, the contributions of specific workers, political leaders,
workers' rights advocates, unions and union leaders.
(b) "Existing school curriculum" means all the courses and
curricula currently in place at a public school.
(c) "Other school activities" means that school administrators
and teachers have flexibility in designing and implementing labor
history instruction as long as the instruction is consistent with
the purpose of this article.
§18-10P-5. Labor History Week designated.
(a) The week following the Labor Day Holiday shall be
designated as Labor History Week for the State of West Virginia.
(b) In recognition of and to further the purposes of Labor
History Week, each public school shall provide instruction on labor
history, including West Virginia labor history, during Labor
History Week. The instruction shall be integrated into the
existing school curriculum in a manner such as, but not limited to,
creating new lesson plans, supplementing existing lesson plans,
holding school assemblies or providing other school activities.
The instruction may be delivered by school administrators, teachers
or by guest speakers.
(c) State institutions of higher education are encouraged to
conduct and promote activities that provide education, awareness
and understanding of labor history.
(d) The Legislature is encouraged to annually recognize Labor History Week by introducing a concurrent resolution to:
(1) Recognize leaders in labor management relations;
(2) Recognize West Virginia's rich labor history;
(3) Recognize hard-working West Virginians; and
(4) Recognize the contributions working people have made to
society and the workplace.
(e) Recognized resources for information, materials and
speakers regarding labor history include, but are not limited to:
(1) The West Virginia Labor History Association;
(2) The West Virginia University Extension Service Institute
for Labor Studies and Research;
(3) Labor management relations professors at higher education
institutions;
(4) West Virginia Humanities Council;
(5) West Virginia Historical Society;
(6) West Virginia Division of Culture and History; and
(7) The West Virginia State American Federation of Labor and
Congress of Industrial Organizations (WV AFL-CIO).
(f) The provisions of this article are not intended to create
a burden, financial or otherwise, for public schools, teachers or
state institutions of higher education.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to increase awareness and
understanding of labor history and the contributions of workers to
the state, nation and world by designating the annual observance of
the week following the Labor Day Holiday as Labor History Week. Moreover, this bill also requires public schools to provide
instruction on labor history, including West Virginia labor
history, during Labor History Week. Schools have flexibility in
designing and implementing labor history instruction as long as the
instruction is consistent with the purpose of this article. The
expected cost of implementation of this legislation is minimal.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.