House Republicans passed a measure Tuesday that would allow companies to offer employees compensatory time rather than time-and-a-half pay, something supporters say would enhance workers' scheduling options but opponents warn would erode protections.

"Nothing should stop us from doing what we can right now to help make life a little easier for moms and dads," the bill's sponsor, Alabama Republican Rep. Martha Roby, said during the floor debate preceding the vote.

The bill passed on a largely party-line vote of 229 to 197. A similar one passed the House in 1996, 1997 and 2013, only to fail to get through the Senate — where it again faces hurdles. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican whose office declined to comment, hasn't indicated whether he plans to take up the measure.