Employment and Training Administration May 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), notice is hereby given of the next meeting of the Native American Employment and Training Council (Council), as constituted under WIOA.

The Department of Labor's (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed revision for the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled ``CW-1 Application for Temporary Employment Certification''; and related information collection and retention requirements (OMB Control Number 1205-0534), which covers Form ETA- 9142C, Application for Temporary Employment Certification (Form ETA- 9142C) with accompanying appendices, and Form ETA-9141C, Application for Prevailing Wage Determination (Form ETA-9141C). This action seeks a revision of the Form 9141C, and its instructions; the rest of the forms and instructions will be renewed without changes. 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).

On March 12, 2021, the Department of Labor (Department or DOL) published a final rule delaying the effective date of the January 14, 2021, rule entitled Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States (the rule or Final Rule), from March 15, 2021 until May 14, 2021. On March 22, 2021, the Department proposed to further delay the effective date of the rule by eighteen months from May 14, 2021 until November 14, 2022, along with corresponding proposed delays to the rule's transition dates. The Department proposed an additional delay to provide a sufficient amount of time to thoroughly consider the legal and policy issues raised in the rule, and offer the public, through the issuance of a Request for Information, an opportunity to provide information on the sources and methods for determining prevailing wage levels covering employment opportunities that United States (U.S.) employers seek to fill with foreign workers on a permanent or temporary basis through certain employment-based immigrant visas or through H-1B, H-1B1, or E-3 nonimmigrant visas. The Department also proposed the further delay to provide agency officials with a sufficient amount of time to compute and validate prevailing wage data covering specific occupations and geographic areas, complete and thoroughly test system modifications, train staff, and conduct public outreach to ensure an effective and orderly implementation of any revisions to the prevailing wage levels. The Department invited written comments from the public for 30 days, until April 21, 2021, on the proposed further delay and received 627 timely comments. The Department has reviewed the comments received in response to the proposal and will delay the effective date of the Final Rule for a period of 18 months, along with corresponding delays to the rule's transition dates.

The Department of Labor (DOL) invites interested parties to submit nominations for individuals to serve on the Workforce Information Advisory Council (WIAC) and announces the procedures for those nominations. There are vacant positions on the WIAC representing State agencies with responsibility for workforce investment activities (State Workforce Agency representatives) and representatives of State workforce and labor market information (LMI) directors. While this notice is directed specifically to obtaining nominations for the current vacancies, LMI director and State Workforce Agency representatives, individuals qualified for the other five membership categories listed below in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section are invited to submit nomination materials, and DOL will consider these nominees in the event that seats in those categories become available. When submitting nomination materials, please indicate the category or categories for which the nominee would like to be considered. Information regarding the WIAC can be found at https://www.dol.gov/ agencies/eta/wioa/wiac.

The Secretary of Labor (Secretary) has determined that the reestablishment of the Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship (ACA or Committee) is necessary and in the public interest. The Department of Labor (DOL) intends to reestablish the ACA charter with revisions which are not intended to change the Committee's purpose or original intent. The revisions update the charter to ensure its closer alignment with the Department's current apprenticeship priorities. Additionally, DOL is requesting nominations of qualified candidates to be considered for appointment to the ACA.