We’ve posted hundreds of blogs over the last six years. Looking back, three out of the top 10 posts are about Service Contract Act vacation rules. For a benefit that’s all about relaxation, it’s one of the most vexing SCA requirements—so much so that I believe they’re a poster child for the cliche that no good deed goes unpunished.
Read MoreA federal enclave doctrine has emerged that precludes the application of state laws to those contracts, including state wage and hour laws, which are being performed in enclaves where only the federal government has exclusive jurisdiction. But the devil is in the details of figuring out if an enclave exists. This blog is meant to identify a process to make that determination.
Read MorePaying workers in cash and off the books is unwise. Paying workers off the books to hide overtime violations isn’t just a bad idea - it’s a terrible idea.
Read MoreThe U.S. Department of Labor Wage & Hour Division has only about 720 investigators. Once upon a time it had over 1,000 investigators. This means that those who would cross the lines set for child labor, minimum wage, and overtime pay, along with noncompliance with Government contract wage laws, are less likely to be found or punished.
Read MoreThe Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) of the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced last week that it recovered “$1.5 million dollars of back wages and damages for more than 400 workers” working for employers that had “federally funded” contracts. The announcement doesn’t convey the underlying cause of this multi-contractor compliance breakdown—the scale of which actually is extremely rare. I sure would like to know what happened here.
Read MoreSenator Bernie Sanders has proposed a new bill to make a 32-hour work week the standard and require that premium overtime be paid for all hours worked in excess of that amount. The bill looks unlikely to gain traction in this Congress, but the future of such legislation is more promising. For now I would propose more mandatory leave laws.
Read MoreThe Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) of the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced last week a three-year “collaborative agreement” with a union to educate workers and identify labor law violations. Is this an unfair thumb on the scale? Hopefully not, but this agreement arguably erodes the degree of independence that should accompany the Government’s enforcement of employment laws.
Read MoreThe saga of administrative fees paid to third party administrators (“TPA”) by prevailing wage fringe benefit plans took an ugly turn with claims by the Department of Labor that a small TPA called AXIM has breached its fiduciary duties. AXIM was administering a benefit plan organized to satisfy the health and welfare (“H&W”) requirements of the Service Contract Act (“SCA”).
Read MoreIf you’re cutting a deal to work out a change order, price adjustment, or something similar - watch out for boilerplate release clauses! It’s tempting to gloss over the fine print to pin down a settlement, get paid, and move on. But, if there’s something lurking on the edges that could come up later, think carefully before you sign.
Read MoreNew rules are now issued and Project Labor Agreements (“PLAs”), which are pre-hire collective bargaining agreements with one or more labor organizations that establishes the terms and conditions of employment will be mostly mandatory for federal government construction projects of $35M or more.
Read MoreA newly proposed policy and related rules would require federal contractors to disclose the compensation and benefits they intend to furnish to job applicants. Contractors also would be prohibited from seeking or using an applicant’s salary history as part of its hiring decision. If adopted, the proposal would apply to almost all federal contractors.
Read MoreInflation is yet again pushing up DOL civil money penalties assessed under the wage and hour laws.
Read MoreRequiring employees to take a lunch break is fine. But if they don’t, you shouldn’t cut their hours because… there’s no such thing as a free working lunch.
Read MoreThe numbers tell a story about the Wage & Hour Division’s investigatory activities in 2023.
Read MoreThe Department of Labor (“DOL”) has finalized its long-awaited “new” rule that really just restores the decades-old approach to assessing whether a worker is an employee covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act or if they’re a mere independent contractor. Truly this is little more than the same old smell test that employers have lived with for ages.
Read MoreNew Year’s Day is a time to nurse hangovers and to raise a glass and toast the new higher state minimum wages.
Read MoreHere’s a gentle reminder. New federal contractor minimum wage rates went into effect on New Year’s Day. Federal contractors should be sure they have revisited their payrolls to verify their wage rates are where they should be. Read on for a refresher about what should be considered.
Read MoreThe Congressional Review Act (“CRA”) gives Congress a shot at nullifying executive branch regulations. Look for the Republicans to try to invoke it as we approach election day and in the next session of Congress thereafter, depending on the election outcome.
Read MoreLast week, the Department of Labor published a Final Rule implementing the latest iteration of the “nondisplacement rule.” The rule (which has come and gone depending on who’s in the White House) is intended to protect federal contract service employees at risk of losing their jobs when the contract they’re working on expires. This gives them a right of first refusal to accept jobs that must be offered to them by a successor contractor.
Read MoreLast week my distinguished colleague wrote about the new Davis Bacon “operation of law” rule that requires the use of a new DOL-issued contract clause. But what’s happening now? Is there a currently valid contract clause that federal Contracting Officers can modify into a contract? For now, the answer appears to be no.
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