Mark B. Cohen - Majority Chairmanship of House Labor Relations Committee

Majority Chairmanship of House Labor Relations Committee

As a result of appointments by Speakers K. Leroy Irvis and James J. Manderino, Cohen served as Chairman of the House Labor Relations Committee from 1983 to 1990, where he focused on increasing the minimum wage and protecting worker's compensation benefits. His initial appointment in 1983 was seen by the Philadelphia Inquirer as one of a number of signs that the Philadelphia delegation "apparently is regaining significant influence in the General Assembly as the 1983-1984 session begins."

Following the actions of Connecticut, Maine, and Michigan, he helped enact Pennsylvania's first whistleblower law, which was one of the more extensive in the nation, covering private sector employees reporting "waste" and "wrongdoing" as well as public sector employees reporting "waste" and "wrongdoing," terms that "are very carefully defined in the statute." The depth and breath of the wrongdoing private sector employees in government-funded programs are protected from losing their jobs from exposing is shown by a 2011 federal court decision holding that the Pennsylvania whistleblower law even covers an employee who reported that teachers were consuming meals provided for students, raising costs and leaving students hungry.

Cohen began his Labor Relations Committee Chairmanship by participating in public and private negotiations aimed at finding a solution to ensure solvency in Pennsylvania's unemployment compensation fund in order to preserve unemployment benefits. His longterm efforts to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage in accordance with rises in inflation, coupled with aggressive statewide organizing led by the Philadelphia Unemployment Project and Pennsylvania labor unions, helped lead to minimum wage increase bill signings by Governors Robert P. Casey in 1988 and Edward G. Rendell in 2006. The Pennsylvania minimum wage increases were part of a nationwide effort among state legislators which he helped organize. From the beginning of his efforts, he saw raising the minimum wage to match inflation as a longterm process, saying after the initial minimum wage increase, "We will come back next time and fight vigorously." His advocacy for increased minimum wages continued after the 2006 increase, too. His efforts as Chairman of the House Labor Relations Committee won him an award from the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce and the enthusiastic praise of the President of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO.

A supporter of equal pay for equal work and equal pay for women, he supported a proposed bill seeking to raise the salaries of people in largely female occupations that was initiated by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, but was stymied when it yielded to political pressures and came out in opposition to its own bill.

He served as a member of the House Select Committee on Farm Labor, investigating the plight of the farm laborer in Pennsylvania, chaired by Rep. James J. A. Gallagher, and worked to enforce the 1978 Seasonal Farm Labor Act. Upon listening to testimony from farm workers, he said "I was really shocked" the state government has shown "a lack of vigor and compassion" in the protection of farm laborers. He sought farmworker justice, seeking to fully enforce state laws protecting each farmworker. Years later, he would continue to press for increased legal help for farmworkers. Decades later, he would serve as a member of the Honorary Committee for the Friends of Farmworkers 30th Anniversary Celebration.

A May, 1986 Labor Relations Committee study of the length of time it took injured workers to get worker's compensation benefits, conducted under Cohen's direction, found that it took disabled workers an average of 10 months to get a decision on their eligibility. "it's much too long," he said. "The current system does little to create pressure for better safety practices, and lessens workers' respect for employers." Cohen sought remedial legislation to deal with workers compensation problems. The Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce offered its own reform program. Ultimately, elements of both plans took effect.

He held hearings on problems related to drug testing, and introduced legislation "requiring companies using drug testing to offer employee assistance programs, more rigorous confirmation tests and opportunities for workers to reform themselves." An essay he and Eric Fillman wrote in support of such legislation for State Government News was reprinted in two anthology textbooks on business ethics by professors at DePaul University as well as the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University and cited in a two others by professors at Salisbury University. Cohen and Fillman wrote the Counterpoint to the question "Is Employee Drug Testing the Answer?" In addition to describing and advocating Cohen's legislation, they wrote "We must all remember that drug abuse is a health and social problem, not just a police problem. Employers genuinely interested in combating the drug problems of the workplace have the responsibility to make a sincere effort to help troubled employees. The continued success and proliferation of employee assistance programs in recent years suggest that such programs respond to the true needs of employers and chemically dependent persons alike....The ultimate goal of employers should be to prevent further drug use, not to reinforce its abuse by adding reasons for an employee to turn to drugs, such as the loss of a job. Firing otherwise productive workers on the basis of drug tests is not a satisfactory answer to the problems of drug abuse in the workplace."

He stopped the reporting out of legislation hostile to the goals of the Pennsylvania labor movement.

Urging support of a higher minimum wage, he spoke at a quickly called Labor Day rally after a period of time in which the average Philadelphia labor leader had stopped hosting Labor Day events due to member disinterest. This rally marked the long-term resumption of Tri-State Labor Day events in Philadelphia. He has continued to participate in Labor Day events.

Due to the retirements of his Democratic successors as Labor Relations Committee Chairman Fred Belardi, Frank Pistella, and Robert Belfanti, Cohen is the only member of the House Democratic Caucus in the 2011-2012 legislative session with the experience of having been Majority Chairman of the House Labor Relations Committee.