Crow Nation Enacts Tribal Workforce Protection Act

On January 28, the Crow Nation became the first tribe to enact a tribal workforce protection act, protecting the rights of all workers – native and non-native – working on the Crow reservation in Montana.

The law, which will take effect on April 1, will prohibit discrimination against workers based on race, color, gender, sexual preference, religion, national origin or tribal affiliation. Read more here.

Maybe someone would like to comment on how such laws work in conjunction with a Tribal Employment Rights Ordinance.

As the story points out, it seems as if the tribe is trying to avoid employment issues as it gears up for its big Many Stars Project – its partnership between the tribe and Australian-American Energy Co. to develop the first coal to liquid plant in the United States – which is expected to bring about 4,000 construction jobs to the reservation and 900 permanent positions. Enacting its own employment laws may make the federal courts less inclined to apply federal employment laws, such as the National Labor Relations Act or the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

BIA Sued for Buffalo Round-up on Crow Reservation

George and Nelvette Siemion, of Fort Smith, Mont., have filed a lawsuit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs for confiscating their buffalo off land they thought they had leased from the agency, according to the Billings Gazette. For almost 40 years, the couple has operated the White Buffalo Ranch on the Crow Reservation. This past spring they discovered the leases they thought they had been awarded through a bid process were awarded to other ranchers. They claim the BIA didn't follow fair bidding practices and bypassed rules that for decades had given Nelvette, a member of the Crow Tribe, preference on tribal land leases. Read more about it here.