The future of overtime pay continues to march forward as the comment period for the Department of Labor’s proposed Fair Labor Standards Act update ends tonight. Earlier this summer the Department of Labor proposed a rule to update the existing overtime regulations for executive, administrative and professional employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The comment period, which ends tonight at midnight, has elicited over 190,000 comments from interested stakeholders and lobbyists. Lydia DePillis of the Washington Post predicts that the proposed update “could have more of a direct impact on Americans’ earnings as almost any federal law that’s passed since the Affordable Care Act.” In her article DePillis also notes that it is no surprise that employment policy has, as of late, migrated to the realm of agency rulemaking and regulation. “As the Obama Administration has resorted to executive action as an end run around gridlocked and hostile Congress, lobbyists have turned their attention to the more complex and obscure world of cabinet agencies.” But with increased attention, comes increased legal scrutiny. If and when a final rule is published, it is likely that legal challenges will be sought, as was the case with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Rule landmark air pollution rule, which was thrown out by a court in June.
Reuters reports that technology workers have won a $415 million settlement against Apple, Google and other Silicon Valley titans for allegedly conspiring to keep wages down by agreeing not to solicit their competitor’s employees. The employees had alleged that agreements to not poach employees from one another limited their earning potential and stunted professional advancement. U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh of San Jose, California approved the settlement as “fair, adequate, and reasonable” for the thousands of plaintiffs a part of the class-action lawsuit. Koh had previously rejected a settlement that would have offered the harmed employees only $324.5 million. Email exchanges between then-Apple CEO Steve Jobs and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt formed the basis of the employees’ anti-trust suit, which was filed over four years ago in 2011, reports CNET.
The AFL-CIO may endorse a presidential candidate before the Iowa caucuses or the New Hampshire Primary according to Politico. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka noted that it was “conceivable” although “not likely” that one of the oval-office hopefuls would win crucial support from the nation’s largest federation of unions before the race heats up. For now, Trumka has meted compliments for each of the democratic hopefuls, Hilary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Trumka said of Clinton that she was “an experienced, good person” but “has to figure out a way to energize workers.” As for Sanders, Trumka extoled his support for labor law reform and for a revamped National Labor Relations Act. Trumka, however, had very little to say of the Republican candidates, with the exception of Mike Huckabee. Last month, OnLabor covered news that Huckabee was the only Republican presidential candidate to court the support of the AFL-CIO at an endorsement meeting. Trumka has since noted that he respects Huckabee for his interest in labor but disagrees with him on many issues.
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June 30
Antidiscrimination scholars question McDonnell Douglas, George Washington University Hospital bargained in bad faith, and NY regulators defend LPA dispensary law.
June 29
In today’s news and commentary, Trump v. CASA restricts nationwide injunctions, a preliminary injunction continues to stop DOL from shutting down Job Corps, and the minimum wage is set to rise in multiple cities and states. On Friday, the Supreme Court held in Trump v. CASA that universal injunctions “likely exceed the equitable authority that […]
June 27
Labor's role in Zohran Mamdani's victory; DHS funding amendment aims to expand guest worker programs; COSELL submission deadline rapidly approaching
June 26
A district judge issues a preliminary injunction blocking agencies from implementing Trump’s executive order eliminating collective bargaining for federal workers; workers organize for the reinstatement of two doctors who were put on administrative leave after union activity; and Lamont vetoes unemployment benefits for striking workers.
June 25
Some circuits show less deference to NLRB; 3d Cir. affirms return to broader concerted activity definition; changes to federal workforce excluded from One Big Beautiful Bill.
June 24
In today’s news and commentary, the DOL proposes new wage and hour rules, Ford warns of EV battery manufacturing trouble, and California reaches an agreement to delay an in-person work mandate for state employees. The Trump Administration’s Department of Labor has advanced a series of proposals to update federal wage and hour rules. First, the […]