Biden’s labor agenda: what you need to know as an employer

拜登政府将其视为长期存在经济不平等的解决方案的优先级。特别是，您应该注意，这些劳动政策的目标是通过利用联邦法规和政策来支持员工。

这re are three areas of labor law that you need to pay attention to in terms of what’s changing with Biden’s labor agenda, each with important takeaways for you. They are as follows:

1. 平等就业机会委员会
2. 承包商与全职员工分类
3. 学徒制

1.平等就业机会委员会

In June 2021,拜登总统签署了联合决议regarding The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) conciliation process.

这resolution reverses the changes in the process promulgated by the Trump administration and returns the process to its original state. The Trump rule required the EEOC to provide employers with a written summary of their facts of the case, their legal theory supporting the claims of discrimination, the identity of the reporting party, and criteria used to establish a potential class of affected employees.

这se stringent requirements would have removed the conciliation process from judicial review.

拜登的决议恢复了马赫采矿与EEOC，这规定EEOC仅需要提供雇主不法行为的指控以及哪些雇员遭受了苦难。有限的司法审查，在Mach Miningv。EEOC中阐明，现在回到系统中。

您作为雇主的外卖

作为雇主，您应该牢记，大修的和解过程为EEOC。EEOC将为您提供更少的信息，您将不再拥有投诉方的身份。

阅读更多有关common mistakes employers make在回应EEOC投诉时。

2.承包商与全职员工

同样，拜登正在撤销特朗普的变化进行独立承包商测试。Independent contractors and freelancers, long utilized by companies for both their flexibility and lower hiring costs, pre-date the inception of 20th century labor laws.

一些背景：作为一部分罗斯福的新交易，《国家劳资关系法》（NRLA）established the rights of private sector employees组建工会并与雇主进行集体谈判以确定工资。同样，《公平劳工标准法》（FLSA）创建的最低工资要求and required time-and-a half pay above 40 hours a week for full-time employees.

但是：独立承包商没有明确包含在这些保护措施中，并且需要雇主与雇员关系的细节是模糊的。

在整个20世纪，国内员工，农业劳工和其他工人提倡公平治疗。在新千年中，独立承包商的数量迅速增加，上升22个百分点从2001年到2019年。

这种戏剧性的尖峰对雇主对雇员的分类为独立承包商进行了审查。这奥巴马DOL发布了指导intended to restrict employers’ ability to classify workers as independent contractors under the FLSA, prompting more than a dozen states toestablish misclassification task forces。

At the end of his term, President Trump’s DOL adopted an altered independent contractor rule. Lauded as a pro-business reform, the test consisted of两个主要和三个次要因素to be considered when classifying employees as independent contractors. The first two factors, the level of agency the individual has over his or her own work, and the opportunity for profit or loss due to their own personal investment, were adequate when they could be conclusively applied to the circumstance at hand.

如果前两个因素不足，那么执行工作所需的技能水平，工作安排的持续时间/永久性以及角色与整体业务运营的关系阐明了工人是否是独立承包商。在返回奥巴马时代的政策中，撤销此五因素测试在很大程度上离开州以确定独立承包商的身份。

这取决于管辖权

尽管如此，构成雇主与雇员关系的定义随状态而变化。各州使用普通法 - 考虑行为控制，财务控制和当事方的关系 - 或utilize an ABC test这是基于缺乏控制，通常的业务和习惯参与的。

尽管如此，各种诉讼和改革仍在继续改变景观。尤其，California’s Prop 22 allowsUber，Lyft，Doordash和其他零工经济公司将其工人归类为独立承包商，从而推翻了较早的法院裁决，该裁决将迫使他们授予更多的员工保护。

但是，明尼阿波利斯，爱荷华州和纽约have increased protections for independent contractors，新法律需要书面合同和申诉的途径。

您作为雇主的外卖

As the gig economy expands and evolves, you should note that the pros and cons of employing independent contractors largely varies by services rendered and duration of arrangement. It is important to remember that state-level legislators are越来越多地审查独立承包商的名称。

3.学徒制

学徒制, seen as a feasible way for workers without college degrees to learn a skilled trade and obtain a well-paying job, are also receiving an overhaul under Biden’s comprehensive infrastructure plan.

Of note to employers, this part of Biden’s labor agenda includes a reversal of特朗普的行政命令13801，这允许创造更多行业认可的学徒计划（IRAP）。IRAP由贸易集团，公司，非营利组织等实体开发或交付，提供基于工作的学习，并与获得证书的参与者达到顶峰。这些计划的灵活性，适应不断变化的市场趋势的能力以及在特定于行业的技能中的有效性而受到赞誉。

拜登政府认为，IRAPS缺乏政府监督，执行工资进展的缓慢，并且无法对培训程序进行标准化。为了应对这些问题，拜登的劳工部正在为恢复原状分配1.3亿美元注册学徒计划（RAPS），由国家学徒咨询委员会。

这committee will consist of diverse stakeholders from a variety of industries, tasked with expanding apprenticeship programs into various sectors – namely clean energy, technology, and healthcare. The NACA is also spearheading efforts to ensure that women, immigrants, and other minorities have equal access to vocational programs.

您作为雇主的外卖

创建学徒制的雇主的最重要的是：随着从IRAPS转向说唱，联邦政策和程序将再次优先于公司的政策和偏好。

Biden’s labor agenda: pay attention

This much is clear –Biden’s economic decisionsmark a dramatic change in course from the Trump agenda.

这overhaul of the EEOC conciliation process favors the rights of employees, allowing for limited disclosure of the complainant’s grievances to the company. Businesses once afforded a looser definition of independent contractors, in line with Trump’s five-factor test, are now under closer state and federal scrutiny to prevent misclassification.

此外，州立法者和倡导团体正在推动独立承包商获得给私人雇员的福利。

最后，随着从行业控制的IRAP转变为联邦监督说唱，公司必须遵守更严格的培训，多样性和工资要求。

With Biden’s agenda putting labor rights front and center, companies such as yourself should be aware of heightened regulation and scrutiny when managing and building your employee base.