In today’s news and commentary, an investigation launches into the Secretary of Labor; New Jersey advances a bill to protect child labor in online videos; and NIOSH reinstates hundreds of employees.

On Monday, top aides to Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer were placed on administrative leave following the start of an investigation by the department’s inspector general. The New York Times and Politico report that Secretary DeRemer allegedly misused official funds for personal travel and had an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate. The suspended aides — her Chief of Staff and Deputy Chief of Staff — were named in the complaint and were said to have knowledge of the misconduct. The White House and the Department of Labor both denied the allegations.

Meanwhile, New Jersey advanced a bill on Monday that would extend labor protections to children featured in online video content. The bill provides that minors who participate in generating online content, or who are passively included in such content, must be compensated with a share of earnings from the content. It further requires that video content creators — referred to as “vloggers” by the bill — follow relevant wage, employment, and child labor laws when employing minors. The bill passed out of the New Jersey legislature with bipartisan support, and will now be sent to Governor Phil Murphy for his signature. Assuming it becomes law, New Jersey will join California, Illinois, Minnesota, and Utah in providing specific protections for children involved in content creation, adding additional oversight to what is now a multi-billion dollar industry. 

Finally, on Tuesday the Trump administration reinstated hundreds of employees of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) who had been placed on leave last year. NIOSH, which is housed in the CDC, is the primary government entity conducting research and providing recommendations for preventing workplace-related injuries and disease. This reinstatement restores positions for about 90% of NIOSH’s staff, who were terminated by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. last April. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) celebrated the reversal as a product of union organizing, stating that “life-saving research is going to be able to continue” as a result.