Kavanaugh Update. The Buzz predicted that the confirmation hearings of Brett Kavanaugh would be all-consuming, but even we underestimated how contested his nomination would become. Regardless of the outcome, the political...more
9/24/2018
/ Appropriations Bill ,
Brett Kavanaugh ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
OIG ,
OSHA ,
Purple Communications ,
Recusal ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings
Mark Your Calendar. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Member Mark Gaston Pearce’s term comes to end on Monday, August 27, 2018. Suffice it to say that most employers won’t exactly be sorry to see him go. ...more
ALJs A-OK at NLRB. In a June 2018 case called Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) administrative law judges (ALJs) were not...more
OSHA Record-Keeping Proposal Released. On July 26, 2018, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a pre-Federal Register version of its proposed rule to amend its 2016 injury and illness recordkeeping...more
See Ya Later, Persuader. It took more than eight years, but the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) persuader rule has finally been rescinded. Proposed just one day prior to the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) 2011...more
7/23/2018
/ Ambush Election Rules ,
Brett Kavanaugh ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Federal Budget ,
H-1B ,
LMRDA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
OSHA ,
Persuader Rules ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
USCIS ,
Workplace Safety
Our Washington Capitals fever is breaking here in D.C. but not before local area legislators introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives congratulating the team on their recent Stanley Cup victory. No surprise...more
Finally, some good news to report from our nation’s capital, as the Washington Capitals won their first ever Stanley Cup last night. Here is your Beltway Buzz....more
6/11/2018
/ Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
OSHA ,
OSHRC ,
Railway Labor Act ,
Ruth Bader Ginsberg ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Teamsters ,
Union Elections ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Violence
DACA Deadline Day. To the surprise of almost no one, March 5 has come and gone, and Congress did not reach a deal on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) issue. This Congress has enough trouble agreeing on...more
Shutdown Showdown. Trying to keep track of the media reports on the negotiations being conducted to avoid a government shutdown has the Buzz feeling as confused as Lou Costello in his famous routine with his partner Bud...more
Some welcome hot air has finally come to D.C., and it’s not just coming from the mouths of politicians and regulators. Seriously. It’s 60 degrees today in D.C.! This time last week, it was 20 degrees. That’s quite a flip-flop...more
“Let me tell you how it will be; There’s one for you, nineteen for me.” The taxman will look a little different beginning in 2018, as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was passed by Congress on December 20—by far the most significant...more
12/26/2017
/ AARP ,
ADEA ,
Ambush Election Rules ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Specialty Healthcare ,
Tax Reform
Washington, D.C., in December is known for its holiday parties, where lobbyists and Hill denizens gather to stab food with toothpicks and knock back cheap—and sometimes not-so-cheap—drinks. Despite all this partying, people...more
12/18/2017
/ Ambush Election Rules ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Holidays ,
Joint Employers ,
Lilly Ledbetter ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
OSHA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Tip-Pooling ,
USCIS
Another hectic week here in D.C. has us feeling like we’re living in a glass case of emotion. Here’s why...more
12/11/2017
/ Blacklist ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
First Amendment ,
NDAA ,
NLRB ,
NLRB General Counsel ,
OSHA ,
Paid Leave ,
SCOTUS ,
Tip Credit ,
Wage and Hour
Welcome back, and hold onto your reindeer reins - it’s going to be a busy few weeks ahead.
The 12 Days (or so) of Congress. Congress has returned to D.C. after a week-long Thanksgiving break, and the Trump administration...more
Now You See It, Now You Don’t—Revised House and Senate Tax Reform Proposals Differ in Treatment of Executive Compensation. As we reported in last week’s Beltway Buzz, the House introduced its tax reform proposal last...more
11/13/2017
/ 401k ,
Blacklist ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Deferred Compensation ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Executive Compensation ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Paid Leave ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Tax Reform ,
Temporary Protected Status
House Republicans Release Long-Awaited Tax Package. On Thursday, November 2, House Republicans released the legislative text of their eagerly awaited tax reform bill....more
“Zombie” ACA Repeal-and-Replace Effort Suddenly Resuscitated. Opponents of Affordable Care Act (ACA) repeal-and-replace efforts no doubt forgot the vitally important “double tap” rule, and now the zombie legislative effort is...more
9/25/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
EEO-1 ,
FOIA ,
H-1B ,
Health Insurance ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
OMB ,
OSHA ,
Repeal ,
Silica
2016 Overtime Rules Invalidated. U.S. District Court invalidates 2016 changes to overtime rules. Steven F. Pockrass has the details here....more
9/1/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Beryllium Exposure ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Joint Employers ,
OMB ,
Opinion Letter ,
OSHA ,
Pay Equity Laws ,
Persuader Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Unions ,
Volks Rule ,
Wage and Hour
EEO-1 News . . . Maybe. Rumors are rampant that the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) may soon take action on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) changes to its EEO-1 form, which will...more
8/21/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Arbitration ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EEO-1 ,
Electronic Filing ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Health Insurance ,
OFCCP ,
OMB ,
OSHA ,
Persuader Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Special Meetings ,
Subsidies
THE TIME IS RIGHT FOR . . . OSHA’S YEARLY SUMMER HEAT CAMPAIGN -
On June 26, 2017, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced the return of its heat illness prevention campaign: Water. Rest. Shade....more
8/4/2017
/ Administrative Interpretation ,
Ban the Box ,
Criminal Background Checks ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
H-1B ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joint Employers ,
Minimum Salary ,
Misappropriation ,
New Legislation ,
Opinion Letter ,
OSHA ,
Over-Time ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Persuader Rules ,
Sick Leave ,
Trade Secrets ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wage Theft ,
White-Collar Exemptions ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety