Department of Labor October 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document extends the deadline for submitting written comments on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, to December 13, 2022. The U.S. Department of Labor (Department) is taking this action to provide interested parties additional time to submit comments.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Employment and Training Administration (ETA)-sponsored information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). Public comments on the ICR are invited.

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is soliciting comments on the information collection for the Program to Prevent Smoking in Hazardous Areas of Underground Coal Mines.

This notice is a summary of a petition for modification submitted to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) by the party listed below.

This document provides notice of the pendency before the Department of Labor (the Department) of a proposed individual exemption from certain of the prohibited transaction restrictions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and/or the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the Code). If the proposed exemption is granted, certain asset managers with specified relationships to JPMorgan Chase Co. (JPMC) (the JPMC Affiliated qualified professional asset managers (QPAMs) and the JPMC Related QPAMs) will not be precluded from relying on the exemptive relief provided by Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 84-14 (PTE 84-14 or the QPAM Exemption), notwithstanding the judgment of conviction against JPMC, as described below.

As discussed in the DATES section below, the Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is announcing that it has posted the transcript of the virtual public hearing regarding the proposed amendment to its exemption procedure regulation online and determined the closing date for the proposed amendment's reopened comment.

The U.S. Department of Labor (the Department) is proposing to modify Wage and Hour Division regulations to revise its analysis for determining employee or independent contractor classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA or Act) to be more consistent with judicial precedent and the Act's text and purpose.

OSHA solicits public comments concerning its proposal to extend the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the information collection requirement specified in its Standard on Dipping and Coating Operations (Dip Tanks).

The Department of Labor's (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed revision to the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Federal-State Unemployment Insurance Program Data Exchange Standardization.'' This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).

The Department of Labor's (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed revision to the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Efforts to Improve Outcomes.'' This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).

This notice is a request for information and/or comment on three reports issued by the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) regarding child labor and forced labor in foreign countries. Relevant information submitted by the public will be used by the Department of Labor (DOL) in preparing its ongoing reporting as required under Congressional mandates and a Presidential directive. The 2021 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor report (TDA report), published on September 28, 2022, assesses efforts of 131 countries to eliminate the worst forms of child labor in 2021 and assesses whether countries made significant, moderate, minimal, or no advancement during that year. It also suggests actions foreign countries can take to eliminate the worst forms of child labor through legislation, enforcement, coordination, policies, and social programs. The 2022 edition of the List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor (TVPRA List), published on September 28, 2022, makes available to the public a list of goods from countries that ILAB has reason to believe are produced by child labor or forced labor in violation of international standards, including, to the extent practicable, goods that are produced with inputs that are produced with forced labor or child labor. Finally, the List of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor (E.O. List), provides a list of products, identified by country of origin, that DOL, in consultation and cooperation with the Departments of State (DOS) and Homeland Security (DHS), has a reasonable basis to believe might have been mined, produced, or manufactured with forced or indentured child labor. Relevant information submitted by the public will be used by DOL in preparing the next edition of the TDA report, to be published in 2023; the next edition of the TVPRA List, to be published in 2024; and for possible updates to the E.O. List as needed. This notice is also a request for information and/or comment on Comply Chain: Business Tools for Labor Compliance in Global Supply Chains (Comply Chain). ILAB is seeking information on current practices of firms, business associations, and other private sector groups to reduce the likelihood of child labor and forced labor in the production of goods. This information and/or comment is sought to fulfill ILAB's mandate under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA) to work with persons who are involved in the production of goods made with forced labor or child labor. Comply Chain seeks to address this mandate through the creation of a standard set of practices that will reduce the likelihood that such persons will produce goods using forced labor or child labor. Comply Chain also achieves a much broader purpose by actively supporting the efforts of companies that seek to address these issues within their own supply chains. Relevant information and/or comment submitted to ILAB will be used to improve and update Comply Chain to better meet the mandates of the TVPRA and help companies and industry groups seeking to develop robust social compliance systems for their global production.

This notice announces the publication of an updated list of goodsalong with countries of originthat the Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) has reason to believe are produced by child labor or forced labor in violation of international standards. ILAB is required to develop and make available to the public the List pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA of 2005), amended.

Notice is hereby given that the Workforce Information Advisory Council (WIAC or Advisory Council) will meet for two days, virtually. Information for public attendance at the virtual meetings will be posted at www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/wioa/wiac/meetings several days prior to each meeting date. The meetings will be open to the public.