June 12, 2025
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Category: Agency Enforcement

Transportation Department Will Enforce English Language Standards for Commercial Truck Drivers

The Trump Administration has announced that it will resume enforcing English language proficiency rules for commercial truckers. Executive Order 14286, issued April 28, gave the Transportation Department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration 60 days to issue new guidance. The new guidance, announced May 20, calls for commercial motor vehicle drivers who fail to meet FMCSA’s longstanding English-language proficiency requirements to be...
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May 21, 2025
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

Federal Court Vacates Key SOGI Provisions of EEOC Harassment Guidance

A federal court has vacated portions of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s guidance related to workplace harassment of LGBTQ+ employees. On May 15, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled that the EEOC exceeded its authority by issuing the guidance in April 2024. It struck down the portions that define “sex” to include “sexual orientation” and “gender...
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May 14, 2025
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Category: Agency Enforcement

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Withdraws Numerous Guidance Documents Pending Review

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has withdrawn 67 guidance documents, including those addressing whistleblower protections and the use of monitoring technology in the workplace. The CFPB’s May 12 announcement stated that many were inconsistent with federal statutory text and imposed compliance burdens without opportunities for public notice and comment. Some documents could be reinstated after further review, the notice said,...
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May 07, 2025
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Category: Agency Enforcement

DOL Pauses Enforcement of Biden’s Independent Contractor Rule

The Labor Department (DOL) will no longer enforce the existing independent contractor rule, DOL announced May 1. Instead, when deciding whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor, the Wage and Hour Division will rely on Fact Sheet #13 (which originated during President George W. Bush’s term), according to Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2025-1. The Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) minimum wage and...
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March 20, 2025
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

EEOC Publishes First Guidance on DEI-Related Discrimination in the Workplace

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on March 19 published two documents addressing how workplace practices related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) may violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The first document — entitled “What To Do If You Experience Discrimination Related to DEI at Work” — aimed at individuals who might have experienced DEI-related discrimination. The second...
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February 25, 2025
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Category: Disability, Accommodations, and Leaves

Biden’s Wage and Hour Division Publishes Guidance in Final Days

In the final days of the Biden Administration, DOL’s Wage and Hour Division issued two opinion letters. WHD opinion letters are not binding on the courts, but employers may rely on them. DOL Opinion Letter FMLA 2025-01-A — FMLA interplay with state and local paid leave programs DOL Opinion Letter FMLA 2025-01-A states that an employer cannot require an employee who...
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February 03, 2025
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Category: Affirmative Action and Diversity

President Trump’s Executive Order Recognizing Two, And Only Two, Sexes

On his first day in office, President Trump signed Executive Order (E.O.) 14168 to establish the federal government’s position that there are two sexes, male and female, that are not changeable. The E.O. defines “female” as “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell” and defines “male” as “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex...
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January 06, 2025
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

New EEOC Fact Sheet Highlights Compliance Risks Related to Wearable Technologies in the Workplace

Wearable technologies in the workplace are the subject of a fact sheet released by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on December 19, 2024. Examples of wearable devices include smart watches that track employees’ activities or monitor their condition, proximity sensors that warn wearers of nearby hazards, smart glasses and helmets that measure the brain’s electrical activity, and GPS devices that...
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December 11, 2024
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Category: Discrimination and Harassment

DOJ Releases Fact Sheet on Anti-Discrimination Rights of Green Card Holders

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Immigrant and Employee Rights Section, has issued a Fact Sheet that outlines workplace discrimination protections for permanent residents (often called “green card holders”). IER’s two-page Fact Sheet, published in November, is entitled “Lawful Permanent Residents’ Employment Rights Under the Immigration and Nationality Act.” It delineates protections under the INA in three areas: hiring, firing,...
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December 11, 2024
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Category: FLSA

Should Expense Reimbursements Be Included When Calculating Overtime? A New Opinion Letter Explains

In the Biden Administration’s first opinion letter interpreting the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Wage and Hour Division has discussed the effect of expense reimbursements on an employee’s regular pay rate for the employee’s overtime premium. An oil and gas industry employer that reimburses its pipeline inspectors $25 per day for the use of their personal mobile phones, cameras, and computers...
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