Posts tagged Fair Labor Standards Act
100 State Leaders Urge Washington to Protect Independent Work
May 8, 2026 // That is why State Policy Network’s Center for Practical Federalism helped organize a coalition of 100 state leaders from 25 states in support of the US Department of Labor’s proposed rule clarifying independent contractor status under federal law. The coalition includes four statewide officials and 96 state legislators. The proposed rule would rescind the Biden administration’s 2024 independent contractor rule and replace it with a clearer standard for determining when a worker is an employee and when a worker may be classified as an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.
Op-ed: It’s Time to Unwind Biden’s Chaos for Freelancers, Small Business
April 29, 2026 // Preserving flexible work is extremely important to women, who make up about half of the nation’s freelance workforce. Nine out of 10 women who left traditional jobs to freelance did so for flexibility. As caregivers, independent contracting allows moms to raise children or care for aging parents. Sara B. stated in her supportive comment for the proposed rule, “I value my flexibility and independence with Instacart because I'm a mom who can only work sometimes because I don't have many people to help me watch my child so I can work. Being able to work whenever I want helps me so much.” For seasoned workers transitioning into retirement and older Americans supplementing Social Security benefits, flexible work keeps them engaged.
Labor Department’s reworked joint employer rule restores common sense
April 23, 2026 // The Labor Department came out with a draft rework of its joint employer rule. CEI labor policy expert Sean Higgins points to some good fixes but underscores the need for Congress to reform the law instead of leaving decisions to regulators:
Trump Labor Department proposes rule redefining workplace violations for franchises
April 23, 2026 // The proposed rule sets four standards for use in every case of potential vertical joint employment: (1) whether the potential joint employer hires or fires the employee in question, (2) whether it supervises or controls the employee’s work schedule or conditions of employment to a “substantial degree,” (3) whether it controls the employee’s rate and method of pay, and (4) if it maintains the worker’s employment records. Wage and Hour Division Administrator Andrew Rogers said that the proposal would “deliver much-needed regulatory clarity in the face of divergent judicial precedent throughout federal courts of appeals.”
Op-ed: Congressional Republicans Should Unshackle Entrepreneurs
April 16, 2026 // Efforts to restore clearer regulations around contractor standards recognize these realities. However, a future administration can scuttle any regulation its Labor Department issues. Legislative clarity solves that problem, and Congress has a vehicle to provide it. The Modern Worker Empowerment Act clarifies standards for independent work, protecting legitimate independent businesses while preserving safeguards against worker misclassification. A law, duly passed and signed, means real, future-proofed certainty for entrepreneurs, freelancers and the organizations that rely on them.
Commentary: The Federal Government Just Moved to Restore the Owner-Operator Model – Here Is What Actually Changed, What Did Not, and What You Still Need to Watch
March 16, 2026 // Three times in five years. That is how many times the federal standard governing whether an owner-operator is legally classified as an independent contractor or an employee has fundamentally shifted under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The 2021 Trump rule. The 2024 Biden rule. And now, on February 27, 2026, the Department of Labor’s formal proposal to rescind the 2024 rule and return to something close to the 2021 framework. Each time this pendulum swings, the trucking industry produces a wave of celebration or alarm depending on which direction it moved. The industry’s reaction to this latest move has been heavily celebratory — and not without reason. But if you are running a small fleet or operating as an owner-operator, the celebration needs to come with a clear-eyed understanding of what this rule change actually does, what it does not do, and where the real risk to your business model still sits.
21st Century Worker Act Aims to End Worker Classification Confusion
March 6, 2026 // Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the 21st Century Worker Act, a much needed practical step to clear up persistent confusion surrounding worker classification under federal law. The bill would replace the current patchwork of conflicting standards under the Fair Labor Standards Act, National Labor Relations Act, and Internal Revenue Code with a single, clear bright line test for determining independent contractor status across federal labor and tax statutes. It also directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to assess the impact of these new standards and allows workers and businesses freedom to mutually elect worker status in cases where conventional classifications do not apply clearly.
DOL moves to loosen independent contractor regulations
February 27, 2026 // The rule would replace the Biden-era “totality-of-the-circumstances” framework used to determine whether a worker was an independent contractor or an employee. At the time, SHRM said the 2024 rule “fosters ambiguity, deterring businesses from extending essential training to independent workers, a detrimental scenario for both parties involved.”
Education and Workforce Committee Passes 3 Bills to Expand Flexibility, Boost Earnings, and Hasten Back Pay
November 25, 2025 // On Thursday, the House Education and Workforce Committee passed three bills to boost flexibility, wages, and efficiency for workers. These three bills would modernize the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act to provide flexibility for workers, simplicity for tipped employees, and more efficient resolutions to payroll errors. Importantly, none of these provisions will cost taxpayers a single dime because they simply remove unnecessary barriers to flexibility and higher pay. In fact, at least one of the bills would likely save taxpayers from unnecessary administrative costs.
DOL once again set to tackle joint employer, independent contractor regulations
August 20, 2025 // Meanwhile, DOL in May told the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that it would no longer defend the last administration’s rule allowing retirement plan fiduciaries to consider environmental, social and governance, or ESG, factors when making investment decisions from a lawsuit filed by several Republican-led states. In another shift, DOL in June said it would begin issuing opinion letters through five of its subagencies. The agency’s new regime published the first such letter in May on the subject of the independent contractor classification status for virtual marketplace company workers. The letter reinstated a stance DOL previously articulated in a 2019 letter that had been rescinded during the Biden administration.