Posts tagged Department of Labor
The ‘pro-union’ president risks the support of a key constituency to avert a rail strike
December 5, 2022 // Biden faces a backlash from a core of rail workers and allied groups, as some of them see his push for a measure to avoid a strike as a betrayal. He signed the measure, which passed with bipartisan support, at the White House on Friday, giving rail workers a significant raise, but denying them the paid sick leave that had been a sticking point in some of the contract talks. Hours later, he arrived at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston and was met by scores of protesters objecting to his handling of a labor dispute that threatened to halt rail service at the peak of the holiday season.
Sen. Braun Introduce Bill To Maximize Americans’ Retirement Funds
November 25, 2022 // Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to require plan fiduciaries to select investments solely on pecuniary factors. If a fiduciary cannot distinguish between investments on pecuniary factors alone they may use non-pecuniary factors, but must provide participants reasoning for their decision. Pecuniary factors are defined as any factors that a fiduciary prudently determines is expected to have a material effect on the risk or return of an investment. fiduciary duty of plan administrators, ESG (environmental, social and governance) funds,
Amazon air hub workers launch campaign to form union
November 23, 2022 // A group of workers who handle planes and packages at Amazon’s national air hub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) are trying to unionize the facility, demanding $30 per hour in starting wages and other benefits. The organizing committee says it is looking to affiliate with one of the national unions trying to organize workers at the giant online retailer, which has a history of aggressively combating efforts to form unions at its fulfillment centers. The disgruntled airport workers are also calling for 180 hours of paid time off, without a cap on accrued time, union representation at disciplinary meetings and more flexible working conditions.
Laufenberg sentenced for stealing union funds
November 18, 2022 // George R. Laufenberg, a former commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, admitted in June that he had stolen pension fund and made false statements to the U.S. Department of Labor. U.S. District Court Judge Kevin McNulty also imposed a $20,000 fine on the former labor leader. Federal prosecutors said that Laufenberg took the funds under a deferred compensation agreement that he was not entitled to. He was the administrative manager of the pension fund. The Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters fired Laufenberg in 2016. In 2018, they also terminated John Ballantyne, the former secretary-treasurer of the union and a political ally of Gov. Phil Murphy. Ballantyne alleged that he was forced out after emerging as a critic of Laufenberg.
Taking the ‘Free’ Out of ‘Freelance’
November 3, 2022 // ...the Biden administration’s recent broadside against independent work, in the form of a new Department of Labor proposed rule for determining when a worker is properly classified as a contractor or an “employee” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (and thus subject to minimum wage, overtime, and other labor regulations). The rule is complicated and still preliminary, but most experts agree on its objective and likely result: to make it more difficult for workers to be classified as independent and thus to force many of them to be reclassified as employees, whether they like it or not.
Biden’s Labor Department moves to raise taxes on the American workforce
November 1, 2022 // The Labor Department’s proposed rule would force Americans who don’t want a boss to have a boss. Under current law, independent contractors perform a task or execute a project and present the result to an individual or business for payment. Unlike traditional employees, independent contractors have the freedom to set their own schedules, determine their workload, and can put food on the table without needing a boss. Labor’s new proposed rule would force independent contractors to reclassify as W-2 employees if the worker is “economically dependent” on the entity that is paying him or her.
Biden’s regulatory machine wants to stifle the freedom of the American worker
October 31, 2022 // Frankly, workers are not helpless. They are perfectly capable of choosing their own lifestyles and can evaluate their labor choices along with the compensation and benefits each provides. We currently have an economy in which, for the entirety of 2022, the number of job openings has nearly outnumbered unemployed workers 2-1. If these “gigs” were so horrible, these people would seek other employment. Moreover, the Biden administration’s mandated reclassification would significantly increase the cost of doing business for both small businesses and large companies such as Uber, Doordash, and others that provide unique economic opportunities for gig workers. This heavy-handed regulatory approach will discourage entrepreneurial innovation and result in added costs that will be passed along to the consumer.
A fearful October for entrepreneurs
October 29, 2022 // The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is coming after the almost 800,000 franchise owners who employ 8.5 million people. The board’s proposed “Joint Employer” rule, would have catastrophic effects on the franchise industry and restrict the opportunities of small business owners who are franchisees. The NLRB rule would force franchisors — distant corporate headquarters — to come between franchisees and their employees. It would do so by making both the headquarters and the small business employers of workers at the franchisees’ store. Franchisors would become jointly liable for employment issues involving workers or contractors who are employed or “directly controlled” (as the current standard notes) by a small business.
Conservative group launches effort to fight Biden administration workplace rules
October 28, 2022 // If implemented, the new rules could restrict independent contracting, which would force some freelancers to reclassify as employees, and broaden the definition of joint employment, making it harder to own and operate franchise businesses. Because these rules are being proposed by executive branch agencies, they do not go through rounds of debate and votes in Congress. However, under the 1946 Administrative Procedures Act, they must go through a public comment period to receive feedback before being implemented. This is where the group, Heritage Action for America, is trying to make an impact, soliciting comments from the public via a new website.