SB 406 Pennsylvania Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

An Act providing for regulation of the meat packing and food processing industry by creating facility health and safety committees in the workplace; establishing the industry workers' rights coordinator within the Department of Labor and Industry; and imposing penalties.

SB 406 creates workplace health and safety committees at Pennsylvania meat packing and food processing facilities employing 100+ workers, directly affecting large facilities covered by meat hygiene laws or food safety regulations. It requires employers to provide language-appropriate safety training on health risks, workers' compensation rights, and committee details to new hires, and mandates paid training time. The bill establishes a workers' rights coordinator in the Department of Labor to oversee compliance and imposes penalties for violations. Employers must also cover out-of-pocket emergency medical transportation costs for work-related injuries requiring immediate care. The law aims to improve workplace safety through joint worker-management committees, regular hazard inspections, and clearer worker protections.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Mar 10, 2025 Last action Jun 10, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Printer's No. PN0361 Printer's No. PN1809 · 8 edits
MODERATE
This bill revision significantly expands the scope of the facility health and safety committees by adding more sponsors and clarifying that these committees are advisory only, not labor organizations. It updates the definition of a 'food facility' to align with federal regulations as of May 1, 2026, and broadens the types of food processing activities covered. The amendment also strengthens committee formation rules to ensure representation from every department, mandates specific training topics, and adds a new coordinator role to investigate compliance.
Scope change
The bill's scope is expanded to include additional sponsors and clarifies that the committees are advisory bodies rather than bargaining units. The applicability is updated to include facilities registered under federal food safety laws as of May 1, 2026, and covers a broader range of food processing activities.
ELIGIBILITY

Added new sponsors to the bill, including Santarsiero, Farry, Pisciotano, and Picozzi, and noted that Senator Robinson amended the bill on June 10, 2026.

DEFINITION

Clarified that the term 'food facility' has the same meaning as 'facility' under 21 CFR Part 1 Subpart H as of May 1, 2026.

REQUIREMENT

Expanded the list of covered activities to include the making, cooking, mixing, processing, bottling, baking, canning, freezing, packing, or rendering of products intended for human consumption.

Added a requirement that if more than two employees are needed to represent each department, at least one employee from each department must be on the committee.

Added a clause stating that committees established under the act are advisory only and do not constitute labor organizations or bargaining representatives.

Modified committee responsibilities to include identifying and communicating accident prevention concerns and added a requirement to assess the effectiveness of new safety equipment or procedures.

Added a new section requiring the appointment of an industry workers' rights coordinator to investigate employer compliance with the act.

Updated the list of required training topics to include hazard detection, inspection, and the methodology used for training.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
3
Key actions
1
Committee
1
Amendments
1
Jun 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported as amended
upper
Mar 10, 2025
Committee
Referred to Labor & Industry
upper
1 primary · 15 co-sponsors

Sponsors