On March 31, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) rescinded a Trump Administration rule that provided a faith-based carve-out exempting federal contractors from compliance with certain anti-discrimination obligations. Federal law has long recognized a religious exemption to anti-discrimination obligations for federal contractors. The Trump Administration rule, which went into effect on January 8, 2021, expanded this faith-based carve-out. The rescission of the 2021 rule, which was published in the Federal Register on March 1, returns OFCCP to its pre-2021 religious exemption rule.Continue Reading Rescinding a Lame Duck Trump Administration Rule, DOL Returns to Its Longstanding Policy on Religious Exemptions for Federal Contractors

On October 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) published its proposed rule regarding the classification of employees and independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) in an attempt to resolve inconsistent analyses amongst the Federal Courts of Appeals. The proposed rule would return to a totality-of-the-circumstances analysis of the “Economic Reality Test” (with a few modifications), which would have the effect of making it more difficult to classify workers as independent contractors.Continue Reading The Haunting Return of the Economic Reality Test: U.S. Department of Labor Proposes Resurrecting the Pre-Trump Era Employee/Independent Contractor Test

On March 11, 2022, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) proposed reverting the definition of “prevailing wage” under the Davis-Bacon Act to a definition used over 40 years ago. According to the DOL, the proposal is meant to modernize the law and “reflect better the needs of workers in the construction industry and planned federal construction investments.”[1]
Continue Reading Turning Back the Clock: DOL Proposes Previous Davis-Bacon Prevailing Wage Definition

On December 17, 2021, in a “Friday Night Surprise” the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the Stay on the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).  This seminal ETS applies to employers with 100 or more employees and requires that employees be either (1) vaccinated; or (2) weekly tested and fully masked if unvaccinated.  While it is anticipated that the Supreme Court will ultimately decide whether the ETS stands, OSHA has already stated that they will begin enforcement of the ETS in January 2022.  Specifically, OSHA will enforce all requirements except testing for unvaccinated employees beginning January 10, 2022, and enforcement related to testing will begin February 9, 2022.
Continue Reading OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard Survival Guide

On November 4, 2021, in response to President Biden’s Executive Order, the Department of Labor, through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”), issued an Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”).  You can read our prior article about the ETS here.  Generally, the ETS mandates all employers with 100 or more employees to require employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing.  The ETS was immediately halted when the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a temporary stay.  Then, numerous lawsuits were filed across the nation, and actions were pending in each of the other Circuit Courts.  The Sixth Circuit “won” the multidistrict lottery, and was selected to hear the combined challenges, including OSHA’s emergency motion to dissolve the stay.  You can read our prior article about the temporary stay here.
Continue Reading Sixth Circuit Reinstates OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard for Private Employers Mandating COVID-19 Vaccinations or Weekly Testing

On November 4, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its much-anticipated mandate-or-test workplace vaccine emergency rule (“the Rule”).  The Rule requires employers with 100 or more employees to either mandate covered employees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or require covered employees that are not fully vaccinated to test for COVID-19 at least weekly and wear a face covering.  The Rule went into effect immediately on November 5 with employers expected to comply by no later than January 4, but implementation has since been halted due to pending legal challenges.  For more information of the Rule requirements and specifics, see our prior article It’s Here: OSHA’s Rule Mandating COVID Vaccinations or Weekly Testing for Employers.
Continue Reading Challenged – OSHA’s Rule Mandating COVID Vaccinations or Weekly Testing for Employers Halted

The much-anticipated vaccine rule is here.  On November 4, 2021, and in response to President Biden’s Executive Order, the Department of Labor, through the Occupational Safety and Health Commission, issued the Emergency Temporary Standard (“the Rule”), requiring mandatory vaccination or weekly COVID testing for many U.S. employers.  The Rule is effective immediately.
Continue Reading It’s Here: OSHA’s Rule Mandating COVID Vaccinations or Weekly Testing for Employers

The American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) requires the full cost of COBRA premiums to be subsidized for COBRA continuation coverage during the period from April 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021 (“Subsidy Period”) of certain assistance-eligible individuals (“AEI“) whose COBRA qualifying event was due to an involuntary termination or reduction in hours. Our prior blog post, COBRA Premium Assistance Under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 – What Employers Should Know, provides information about the ARPA COBRA subsidy and associated notice requirements. ARPA also required employers to comply with certain notice obligations, first at the outset of the Subsidy Period to make the AEIs aware of the subsidy, and now to inform AEIs that the subsidy is nearing expiration through what is known as the Notice of Expiration of Period of Premium Assistance (“Expiration Notice”).
Continue Reading Reminder: ARPA COBRA Subsidy Expiration Notice Due by September 15

On May 5, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced it is officially withdrawing, effective May 6, 2021, the rule promulgated under the Trump administration addressing the standard to determine whether an individual is properly classified as an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).  The rule, which was rolled out two weeks before the end of President Trump’s term, was initially scheduled to take effect on March 8, 2021 but was delayed by President Biden until May 7, 2021.
Continue Reading U.S. Department of Labor Announces Withdrawal of Trump-Era Independent Contractor Rule

The Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently issued key guidance in the form of frequently asked questions (“FAQs”) about COBRA Premium Assistance under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARPA”).  In addition to issuing the FAQs, the DOL issued model notices and announced a new website dedicated to the COBRA premium subsidy under ARPA, which can be found at the following link: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/laws-and-regulations/laws/cobra/premium-subsidy.
Continue Reading COBRA Premium Assistance Under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 – What Employers Should Know