DOL Expected to Release Details of Updated FLSA Joint-Employer Rule Shortly

February 23 the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division sent a proposed rule on Joint Employer status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to the White House regulatory review office. The rule’s details will not be released until the Biden Administration signs-off.

The Biden Administration may potentially rescind the Trump-era rule. While a federal judge struck down that standard in September, the DOJ under President Trump appealed that decision several days before President Joe Biden took office. This move made it difficult for the Biden Administration to abandon the defense litigation but left open a path for repeal through new rulemaking.

A new standard will likely return to the Obama DOL’s view that corporations are often accountable for the labor standards at their franchisees, subcontractors, staffing firms, and other affiliated companies.

This rulemaking is separate from the National Labor Relation Board’s joint-employer rule. It would address when more than one employer can be held jointly responsible for failing to pay minimum wages and overtime to workers.

To become an IWLA member visit, http://31y.93c.myftpupload.com/become-an-iwla-member/