Compliance Regulations and Guidance Affecting your Industry

The White House has announced plans for an ambitious regulatory reform across federal departments and agencies. This is the preliminary regulatory reform plan of the National Labor Relations Board.

The White House has announced plans for an ambitious regulatory reform across federal departments and agencies. This is the final regulatory reform plan of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The White House has announced plans for an ambitious regulatory reform across federal departments and agencies. This is the final regulatory reform plan of the Department of Labor.

The Davis Bacon Act, 1931, is a federal law requiring that construction workers working on public projects be paid the local “prevailing” wage. The law applies to contractors and subcontractors who have taken up federally funded or assisted construction contracts in excess of $2000.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush in 1990. The ADA is a landmark civil rights legislation that made it possible for around 43 million Americans with disabilities the right to public services and to apply and be considered for employment opportunities. The ADA was amended in 2008 to give broader protections to disabled workers.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provides a COBRA premium reduction for eligible individuals who are involuntarily terminated from employment through the end of May 2010. The COBRA premium reduction under ARRA is not available for individuals who experience involuntary terminations after May 31, 2010. However, individuals who qualified on or before May 31, 2010 may continue to pay reduced premiums for up to 15 months, as long as they are not eligible for another group health plan or Medicare.

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) gives workers and their families who lose their health benefits the right to choose to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time under certain circumstances such as voluntary or involuntary job loss, reduction in the hours worked, transition between jobs, death, divorce, and other life events.

COBRA generally requires that group health plans sponsored by employers with 20 or more employees in the prior year offer employees and their families the opportunity for a temporary extension of health coverage (called continuation coverage) in certain instances where coverage under the plan would otherwise end.

COBRA outlines how employees and family members may elect continuation coverage. It also requires employers and plans to provide notice.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a US law that requires larger employers to provide employees job-protected unpaid leave due to a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform his or her job, or to care for a sick family member, or to care for a new child.

Signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 24, 1965, the Executive Order 11246 establishes the significance for Equal Employment Opportunity. Prohibiting the “federal contractors and federally assisted construction contractors and subcontractors, who do over $10,000 in Government business in one year from discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin", the Order ensures that the Contractors "take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, color, religion, sex or national origin”.

CLICK HERE to view the Regulation.

Use Form W-11 to confirm that an employee is a qualified employee under the HIRE Act. You can use another similar statement if it contains the information above and the employee signs it under penalties of perjury.

Under the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, two new tax benefits are available to employers who hire certain previously unemployed workers (“qualified employees”).  The first, the payroll tax exemption, provides employers with an exemption from the employer’s 6.2 percent share of social security tax on wages paid to qualifying employees, effective for wages paid from March 19, 2010 through December 31, 2010.

The second provision is for an up to $1000 tax credit for retaining those newly hired employees for over a year, provided their second 6 month period wages are at least 80% of the first 6 months.

Effective Date: March 18, 2010

Introduced by James Madison to the First United States Congress in 1789, the Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments of the United States Constitution. The Rights of Bill were first introduced as a series of articles and became effective as Constitutional Amendments on December 15, 1791.

The Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2010 amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008. The Act further extends the final date for entering a federal-state agreement under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program through November 30, 2010 and postpones the termination of the program until April 30, 2011. Also, the Act amends the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend until December 1, 2010, requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC.

Issuing Date: Jul 22, 2010

Standard CIP-004 requires that personnel having authorized cyber or authorized unescorted physical access to Critical Cyber Assets, including contractors and service vendors, have an appropriate level of personnel risk assessment, training, and security awareness. Standard CIP-004 should be read as part of a group of standards numbered Standards CIP-002 through CIP-009. Responsible Entities should interpret and apply Standards CIP-002 through CIP-009 using reasonable business judgment.

The Secretary amends our regulations implementing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which is section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act. These amendments are needed to implement a provision of the USA Patriot Act and the Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act, which added new exceptions permitting the disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records without consent. The amendments also implement two U.S. Supreme Court decisions interpreting FERPA, and make necessary changes identified as a result of the Department’s experience administering FERPA and the current regulations. These changes clarify permissible disclosures to parents of eligible students and conditions that apply to disclosures in health and safety emergencies; clarify permissible disclosures of student identifiers as directory information; allow disclosures to contractors and other outside parties in connection with the outsourcing of institutional services and functions; revise the definitions of  ttendance, disclosure, education records, personally identifiable information, and other key terms; clarify permissible redisclosures by State and Federal officials; and update investigation and  enforcement provisions.
 

Effective Date: These regulations are effective January 8, 2009.

The Department of Labor (‘‘Department’’ or ‘‘DOL’’) is amending its regulations to extend the transition period of the application filing procedures currently in effect for all H– 2A employers with a date of need on or before July 1, 2009, as established in the H–2A Final Rule published on December 18, 2008 and in effect as of January 17, 2009. The transition period is extended to include all employers with a date of need on or before January 1, 2010

Effective Date:This rule is effective  April 16, 2009

The Board is amending regulations concerning the procedures for filing documents with the Agency that when the document being filed electronically is required to be served on another party to the proceeding, the other party shall be served by electronic mail (e-mail), if possible. If electronic service is not possible, the other party shall be notified by telephone of the substance of the transmitted document and a copy of the document shall be served personally, or by registered mail, certified mail, regular mail, or private delivery service, or, with the consent of the other party, by facsimile transmission

Effective Date:This rule is effective january  1, 2009

The Department of Labor (DOL or the Department) is suspending the H–2A Final Rule published on December 18, 2008 and in effect as of January 17, 2009. That Final Rule amended the regulations governing the certification for temporary employment of nonimmigrant workers in agricultural occupations on a temporary or seasonal basis, and the enforcement of contractual obligations applicable to employers of such nonimmigrant workers. To ensure continued functioning of the H–2A program, the Department is republishing and reinstating the regulations in place on January 16, 2009 for a period of 9 months, after which the Department will either have engaged in further rulemaking or lift the suspension

Effective Date:This rule is effective June 29, 2009.

This document contains the interim final regulations governing the administration of the death gratuity created by section 1105 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, Public Law 110–181, by the Department of Labor (Department or DOL). Section 1105 provides a death gratuity payment to eligible survivors of Federal employees and nonappropriated fund instrumentality employees (NAFI employees) who die of injuries incurred in connection with service with an Armed Force in a contingency operation. Section 1105 amended the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) to add a new section, designated as section 8102a. The Secretary of Labor has the authority to administer and to decide all questions arising under FECA. 5 U.S.C. 8145. FECA authorizes the Secretary to prescribe rules and regulations necessary for the administration and enforcement of the Act. 5 U.S.C. 8149. The Secretary has delegated the authority provided by 5 U.S.C. 8145 and 8149 to the Assistant Secretary for Employment Standards who then delegated that authority to the Director of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP), who is responsible for the administration and implementation of FECA. 20 CFR 1.1. Thus OWCP will administer the adjudication of claims and the payment of the death gratuity under new section 8102a

Effective Date:This rule is effective   August 18, 2009.

The Federal Labor Relations Authority (Authority) is making technical amendments to its regulations. The amendments update rules and regulations that prescribe uniform ethical conduct standards and disclosure requirements applicable to all executive branch personnel and update regulations to reconcile with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and update or delete several outdated provisions and citations The amendments also make technical revisions to the requirements for documents filed in negotiability disputes and make technical revisions regarding when filings made by commercial delivery are considered served

Effective Date:This rule is effective  November 9, 2009.