Employment Standards Administration 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Labor (Department) previously announced that it would not bring enforcement actions against any employer for violations of Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) obligations resulting from amendments to its domestic service regulations for 30 days after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a mandate making effective its opinion affirming the validity of the regulatory changes. The Court issued its mandate on October 13, 2015; the Department's 30-day non-enforcement period will therefore conclude on November 12, 2015. From November 12, 2015 through December 31, 2015, the Department will exercise prosecutorial discretion pursuant to its previously announced time-limited non-enforcement policy.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed revision to the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Requests to Approve Conformed Wage Classifications and Unconventional Fringe Benefit Plans Under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts and Contract Works Hours and Safety Standards Act.'' 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), 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. 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. A copy of the proposed information request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA or Act) guarantees a minimum wage and overtime pay at a rate of not less than one and one- half times the employee's regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. While these protections extend to most workers, the FLSA does provide a number of exemptions. The Department of Labor (Department) proposes to update and revise the regulations issued under the FLSA implementing the exemption from minimum wage and overtime pay for executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, and computer employees. This exemption is referred to as the FLSA's ``EAP'' or ``white collar'' exemption. To be considered exempt, employees must meet certain minimum tests related to their primary job duties and be paid on a salary basis at not less than a specified minimum amount. The standard salary level required for exemption is currently $455 a week ($23,660 for a full-year worker) and was last updated in 2004. By way of this rulemaking, the Department seeks to update the salary level to ensure that the FLSA's intended overtime protections are fully implemented, and to simplify the identification of nonexempt employees, thus making the EAP exemption easier for employers and workers to understand. The Department also proposes automatically updating the salary level to prevent the level from becoming outdated with the often lengthy passage of time between rulemakings. Lastly, the Department is considering whether revisions to the duties tests are necessary in order to ensure that these tests fully reflect the purpose of the exemption.

The Department of Labor (DOL), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A). 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 Wage and Hour Division is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to extend Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the Information Collections: Application for a Farm Labor Contractor or Farm Labor Contractor Employee Certificate of Registration; Motor Vehicle Safety for Transportation of Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Workers. Further, the Department is soliciting comments concerning its proposal to make revisions to the forms WH-514, WH-514a, WH-515, and WH-530. A copy of the proposed information collection request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this Notice.