The US Department of Labor recently issued new rules governing “joint employer” relationships, which take effect 3/16/20. These rules limit the circumstances under which an employer (including franchisers/franchisees, subsidiaries and more) can be held as a “joint employer” of a group of workers for purposes of wage/hour laws, OSHA and MSHA enforcement and beyond. The move comes as a trio of federal agencies (DOL, NLRB and EEOC) grapple with the tests to use to determine if two employers share liability for compliance with laws affecting workers. The new DOL rules also will impact OSHA enforcement and force review of relationships with subsidiaries, affiliates, contractors and even temporary staffing agencies. The program will discuss the recent NLRB “joint employer” decisions and how they interface with DOL developments.
The presenter, an active employment and OSHA attorney, will explain the real world impact of the new DOL Joint Employer rule, and what employers need to do to get ready for its implementation. The presentation will cover recent federal court rulings on OSHA’s multi-employer citation policy, as well as the latest NLRB decisions that also have “joint employer” implications. Best practices for avoiding OSHA enforcement as a “controlling” or “exposing” employer will be provided, along with guidance on how training, written programs and oversight can play a role in joint employer status determination.
Join us to learn:
- How the DOL has changed its joint employer rule, and the impact on OSHA and other DOL rules and enforcement
- How to analyze operations under the new “four part test” in the January 2020 DOL rule
- What the real-world impact of the US Court of Appeals’ 2019 Hensel Phelps decision will be on future enforcement under OSHA’s multi-employer policy
- The impact of the new joint employer rules on enforcement under OSHA’s General Duty Clause and for purposes of determining repeat violations and SVEP status, and how it affects the scope of corporate-wise settlement agreements with DOL/OSHA
- Which recent NLRB and EEOC developments on the joint employer front; may affect your business