On Monday, the Department of Labor (DOL) published in the Federal Register its Semiannual Regulatory Agenda. (pdf)  This document sets forth the regulations the agency intends to review or develop in the next 12 months. According to the summary of the agenda, the DOL’s “agencies have carefully assessed their available resources and what they can accomplish in the next 12 months and have adjusted their agendas accordingly.” Highlights of the agenda include the following:

• The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) plans to issue proposed regulations on construction contractor affirmative action requirements as well as proposed regulations requiring that federal contactors and subcontractors conduct more substantive analysis of recruitment and placement actions taken under the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Act. The OFCCP also plans to seek public comment on improving employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
• The Office of Labor Management Standards (OLMS) intends to propose a rule that would narrow the scope of the interpretation of section 203(c) of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA). This section creates an “advice” exemption from reporting requirements that apply to employers in connection with persuading employees about the right to organize and bargain collectively. A notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) is estimated to be issued by November 2010.
• The OLMS plans to issue a final rule by June 2010 on a standard prescribing the size, form, and content of the notice to be posted by a contractor that describes the rights of employees under federal labor laws. Executive Order (E.O.) 13496 – Notification of Employee Rights under Federal Labor Laws – directed the OLMS to create regulations regarding the notice.
• The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) plans to issue a final rule by the end of 2010 to implement the provisions of E.O. 13495, Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers under Service Contracts. This E.O. requires that any federal service contracts and solicitations for such contracts include a clause requiring contractors and their subcontractors to offer existing employees the right of first refusal to take positions for which they are qualified under the new contract.
• The WHD also intends to issue a NPRM by November 2010 to implement the National Defense Authorization Act, which expanded existing military family leave entitlements, and the Airline Flight Crew Technical Corrections Act, which expanded Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) eligibility requirements to include airline flight crews. According to the regulatory agenda, the DOL “is reviewing the implementation of these statutory amendments and other revisions of the current regulations.”
• The WHD plans to issue a NPRM by August 2010 of its intent to update the recordkeeping regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) “in order to enhance the transparency and disclosure to workers of how their pay is computed, and to modernize other recordkeeping requirements for employees under ‘telework’ and ‘flexiplace’ work arrangements.”
• Considered a longer term action, the WHD intends to update the FLSA regulation: Application of the FLSA to Domestic Service, that would possibly subject certain currently exempt home care workers to FLSA coverage. The agency plans to issue a NPRM by October 2011.
• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) regulatory agenda includes prerule action on occupational exposure to beryllium and diacetyl, and a review of the Methylene Chloride Standard and the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard. OSHA plans to issue a NPRM on chrystalline silica by February 2011 and a final rule on cranes and derricks in construction by July 2010.

DOL will host live Web chats to discuss the regulatory agenda at the following times:

Monday, April 26

Office of Labor-Management Standards Web chat: 11 a.m. to noon EDT

Occupational Safety and Health Administration Web chat: 1 to 2 p.m. EDT

Employee Benefits Security Administration Web chat: 2 to 3 p.m. EDT

Tuesday, April 27

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Web chat:  9 to 10 a.m. EDT

Wednesday, April 28

Wage and Hour Division Web chat: 9 to 10 a.m. EDT

Mine Safety and Health Administration Web chat: 10 to 11 a.m. EDT