Illinois Federal Court Temporarily Enjoins Key Amendment to the Illinois Day and Temporary Labor Services Act

In August 2023, Illinois Governor Pritzker signed sweeping amendments to the Illinois Day and Temporary Labor Services Act (DTLSA) that imposed new obligations on both the day and temporary labor service agencies employing covered laborers and the clients to whom those agencies contract for temporary labor. Recently, one of those amendments (indeed the key amendment) was temporarily enjoined by an Illinois federal court, calling into question the future impact such amendments will have on the temporary labor market.

As way of background, the 2023 amendments to the DTLSA included, most significantly, a requirement that laborers assigned to a client for more than 90 calendar days (in any 12-month period, whether consecutively or intermittently) must be paid, by the temporary agency, at least the rate of pay and equivalent benefits as the lowest-paid directly hired employee of the client with the same level of seniority at the client and performing the same or substantially similar work. Agencies may alternatively pay “the hourly cash equivalent of the actual cost benefits” in lieu of providing equivalent benefits.  The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) defined benefits as including health care, vision, dental, life insurance, retirement, leave, other similar employee benefits, and other employee benefits as required by State and federal law.  The pay and equivalent benefits obligation was one of several obligations placed on covered agencies and the clients with whom they contract. These amendments were due to take effect immediately and the IDOL passed emergency rules to provide guidance to employers on compliance.  However, in September 2023 the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) objected to those rules. And then in November 2023, Governor Pritzker signed a new amendment to the DTLSA to delay the effective date of these new obligations until April 1, 2024.

Continue reading “Illinois Federal Court Temporarily Enjoins Key Amendment to the Illinois Day and Temporary Labor Services Act”

Child Labor Law Violations: U.S. Department of Labor Issues New Assessment Procedures for Calculating Civil Monetary Penalties

On November 28, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced that it will assess child labor civil monetary penalties for nonserious injury and noninjury violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act on a per-violation basis, rather than on a per-child basis as it had previously done, significantly increasing the aggregate of potential penalties.

To view the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

New York State DOL Issues Amended WARN Regulations

The New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL) amended its Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act (NY WARN) regulations, which took effect on June 21, 2023. Both NY WARN and its federal counterpart require covered businesses to provide advance notice of closures and layoffs to the Commissioner of Labor and affected employees. The NY WARN regulations are more expansive than the federal WARN regulations, defining “covered business” as any private business employing 50 or more full-time employees in New York. As outlined below, it also has stricter notice requirements.

Continue reading “New York State DOL Issues Amended WARN Regulations”

OFCCP Sends Notice of Intent to Release EEO-1 Data to Non-objecting Contractors

On August 19, 2022, as discussed in previous alerts, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) notified its federal contractor base that the OFCCP received a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) from the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) for all Type 2 Consolidated Employer Information Reports, Standard Form 100 (EEO-1 Report), filed by federal contractors and first-tier subcontractors (contractors) from 2016 to 2020. Contractors had until October 19, 2022, to file their individualized objections to the production of their EEO-1 reports.

Continue reading “OFCCP Sends Notice of Intent to Release EEO-1 Data to Non-objecting Contractors”

New Proposed Rule on Independent Contractors: DOL’s Latest Plan for Overhaul of the Existing Standard

On October 11, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a new proposed rule that is more aligned with judicial precedent than a previous proposal regarding whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The proposed rule would rescind the Independent Contractor Rule (2021 IC Rule) promulgated by the Trump administration on January 5, 2021, which has been criticized by some for making it easier for businesses to classify workers as independent contractors.

This is the DOL’s second attempt to rescind the 2021 IC Rule, after a Texas federal court ruled that the DOL’s first revision failed on procedural grounds. The DOL’s latest proposal may also face legal challenges when it is made final. The proposal is subject to a 45-day comment period beginning October 13, 2022, the date of publication in the Federal Register.

Continue reading “New Proposed Rule on Independent Contractors: DOL’s Latest Plan for Overhaul of the Existing Standard”

OFCCP Extends Deadline for Individualized Objections From Federal Contractors to Production of Their 2016-2020 EEO-1 Data in Response to FOIA Request

 As covered in a previous alert, on August 19, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) notified its federal contractor base that it received a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) from the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) for all Type 2 Consolidated Employer Information Reports, Standard Form 100 (EEO-1 Report), filed by federal contractors and first tier subcontractors from 2016-2020.

Contractors initially had until September 19, 2022, to file individualized objections to the production of their EEO-1 reports. Importantly, the OFCCP has extended the deadline to file an objection to October 19, 2022, to allow contractors sufficient time to ascertain whether they are covered by the FOIA request and submit objections.

Continue reading “OFCCP Extends Deadline for Individualized Objections From Federal Contractors to Production of Their 2016-2020 EEO-1 Data in Response to FOIA Request”

©2024 Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP. All Rights Reserved. Attorney Advertising.
Privacy Policy