As we expected here and here, the day has finally come. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced Friday that it had issued a Final Rule establishing a drug and alcohol clearinghouse for holders of commercial drivers' licenses. The effective date of the Final Rule is January 6, 2017, but transportation employers ...

Don't mess with Texas.

In Lubbock yesterday, Judge Sam R. Cummings permanently enjoined the U.S. Department of Labor's Persuader Rule, which is great news for employers. David Phippen has the full story here. The DOL can appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (it's already appealing the preliminary injunction issued in June), but with the coming change in ...

The U.S. Department of Labor recently rolled out www.worker.gov, an online tool designed to help employees file various types of complaints against their employers. The White House announced that the website will assist individuals “if they have had wages stolen, been injured on the job, faced discrimination, or been retaliated against for joining together to seek ...

Effect of Election 2016 on labor and employment law. We asked our practice group heads and some thought leaders to tell us how they think employers will be affected by a Trump Administration on specific labor and employment law issues. This client bulletin is packed with prognostication about what we may see in the areas of affirmative action and OFCCP compliance, litigation ...

Congratulations to President-Elect Donald J. Trump, and to everyone who was elected or reelected to office yesterday. With a President Trump and Republican majorities in both houses of Congress, employers may see some changes in the form of less aggressive regulatory agencies, a National Labor Relations Board that is more employer-friendly, and some relatively conservative ...

There is great rejoicing among federal contractors since a federal judge in Texas has preliminarily blocked the "Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces" rules from going into effect. Absent the court's action, the rules would have taken effect for the largest contractors this past Tuesday, and for some smaller ones in 2017. The case is far from over, but this is a ...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has delayed for a second time the enforcement date of its new "Reasonable Reporting Procedure" rule as it pertains to post-accident drug testing and safety incentive programs. The new enforcement date for the rule is December 1.

The rule was scheduled to take effect on August 10, and then OSHA extended the ...

As our regular readers know, Employment & Labor Insider is a non-partisan blog. But with the first Presidential debate coming on Monday night, I thought it would be helpful to look at the two major presidential candidates and their positions on issues of interest to employers.

The following comes from each of the candidates' websites, supplemented by some news ...

A national database of truck drivers who have failed drug or alcohol tests, or refused to take them, will soon be a reality.

That’s according to Juan Moya, Program Manager for the Drug and Alcohol Program of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, who spoke this week at a conference of the Substance Abuse Program Administrators Association. Mr. Moya said that the ...

Labor Day marked the beginning of the "serious" election season. In 2012, I posted on dos and don'ts for employers, but many of my old recommendations aren't going to work in today's labor law climate. Here's an updated guide to help employers and their employees survive to November 8, and beyond, which I think will comply with the latest positions of the National Labor Relations ...