Posts tagged DOL
While Sean O’Brien Attacks Credit Card Companies, Teamsters Make Millions from High-Interest Card
February 5, 2025 // O’Brien is likely fine with this apparent hypocrisy because the Teamsters get paid handsomely by Capital One to promote the card. Disclosure forms filed with the Department of Labor show that the Teamsters received from Capital One $1.28 million in 2023, $1.52 million in 2022, and $1.5 million in 2021.
US court upholds Biden minimum wage order for federal contractors
February 5, 2025 // The panel, which reversed a judge in Texas who had blocked Biden's order, said a 1949 federal law allows the president to regulate federal contracting in any way he deems necessary to promote economy and efficiency. The decision upholds an order from Biden, a Democrat, but could be a boon to his Republican successor, President Donald Trump, if he uses his powers over federal procurement to implement other parts of his agenda such as eliminating corporate diversity initiatives.
How the Colorado Labor Peace Act came to be and why unions want so desperately to get rid of it
February 3, 2025 // The Colorado Labor Peace Act requires a 75% vote of approval before a union can even negotiate with an employer over imposing union security. Senate Bill 5 would remove the union security vote requirement altogether. Senate Bill 5 likely has enough Democratic support to pass the state legislature, but Gov. Jared Polis has indicated he won’t sign it into law as is. And the Colorado business community is pushing back on the proposal, too.
The Facts About U.S. Union Membership
January 29, 2025 // The total number of workers who are union members is 14.3 million. Of those, 7 million are public sector workers, so roughly half of U.S. union members work for the government. The National Education Association reported to the Department of Labor that it had 2.8 million members in 2024. The American Federation of Teachers reported 1.8 million members. That means 32 percent of all U.S. union members are in the two major teachers’ unions.
The Changes Begin: Trump Administration Takes Slew of Actions in the Labor and Employment Field
January 28, 2025 // President Trump did not take immediate action to fire the General Counsels for the EEOC and NLRB, moves that had been widely anticipated for his first day in office, although those actions are expected soon. Once made, the moves will further shift those agencies away from their Biden-era policies toward, to some extent, more business-friendly approaches with some significant caveats evident in the President’s initial Executive Orders.
‘We Are Hopeful’ Q&A with Patrice Onwuka and Kim Kavin
January 24, 2025 // Congress should consider enshrining the Trump-era definition for independent contractors, and/or consider ways to get ahead of the opposition to flexible work. The Employee Rights Act was a federal bill that, among many pro-worker provisions, sought to protect independent contractors as a counter to a national ABC Test in the now-defunct Protecting the Right to Organize Act. Portable benefits also provide a pathway for companies to provide independent contractors with workplace benefits without triggering a reclassification.
Chairman Walberg Calls on DOL IG to Investigate EBSA’s Power Abuse
January 23, 2025 // “As we saw in the first Trump administration, career bureaucrats have sought to undermine the goals of the President and his cabinet Secretaries. We know of cases where bureaucrats have leaked sensitive information or are working with plaintiffs’ attorneys to skew court cases against employers. The Committee’s oversight work recently brought to light how [EBSA] is abusing its authority to secretly share information with class action law firms. This is a blatant abuse of the law, and our Committee will hold EBSA accountable.”
NFLPA Investigating Own Role in OneTeam Amid Corruption Allegations
January 22, 2025 // The letter asks the recipients to save all documents related to OneTeam and lists two NFLPA executives for contact: assistant general counsel Heather McGee and general counsel Tom DePaso. A source said the NFLPA also hired Linklaters partner Richard Smith for the investigation. Smith has handled several high-profile investigations for the football union, including allegations brought by Colin Kaepernick; the Ray Rice domestic violence episode; the Miami Dolphins’ bullying investigation; and the New Orleans Saints’ “Bountygate” scandal. Smith did not reply for comment. The NFLPA, MLBPA, and RedBird Capital created OneTeam in 2019 to represent athletes and their lucrative group licensing deals. In 2022 RedBird sold its stake to a group of equity investors, including HPS Investment Partners and Atlantic Park, in a deal that valued OneTeam at $1.9 billion.
(I4AW) Report Shows Extent of Tax Dollars Spent on Public-Sector Unionism
January 17, 2025 // After the last official report was compiled in 2019, the OPM stopped reporting the hours and costs involved in union-related “official time” despite repeated calls from House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx for President Trump’s 2018 Executive Order to be honored. Pushback continued in 2023 when Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) directed a letter to the OPM querying why the website reporting page went missing in July of that year, only to be told the site was undergoing “maintenance”. In March of last year, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) introduced legislation entitled the Taxpayer-Funded Union Time Transparency Act which called on a return to reporting on the part of the OPM regarding time spent on collective bargaining. In August, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced a bill entitled the No Union Time on the Taxpayer’s Dime Act to curtail union activities by federal employees during work hours. All these attempts to increase transparency for taxpayers were roadblocked by Democrats in Congress and even now, the site still has not re-emerged – making I4AW’s report even more critical.
Former EEOC Commissioner and Acting WHD Administrator Keith Sonderling Announced as Pick for Deputy Secretary of Labor
January 16, 2025 // The deputy secretary of labor serves as the de facto chief operating officer of the DOL, managing an approximately 17,000-person workforce and a $14 billion dollar budget. Further, the deputy manages the politically appointed heads of each agency that falls under the DOL, including vital agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, WHD, the Employee Benefits Security Administration, and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), among others. Sonderling has a track record of prioritizing clear guidance on both traditional issues such as those found in wage and hour law or occupational safety and cutting-edge issues such as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace. Sonderling’s record throughout his career provides insight into what employers can expect from Sonderling’s leadership as the deputy secretary of labor.