Expert Compliance Insights & Tips for Businesses

December 11, 2014

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1.3M Enroll in ACA in First 3 Weeks | WWC

As the Dec. 15 deadline approaches to sign up for health care coverage beginning on Jan. 1, 2015, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has released what it calls a "snapshot" of activity on the site. According to the just-released snapshot, 618,548 people enrolled on HealthCare.gov and CiudaddeSalud.gov in the third open-enrollment week (Nov. 29-Dec.5), bringing the total to 1,383...

December 10, 2014

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OSHA’s Combustible Dust Rule Delayed | WWC

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) began writing a combustible dust rule in early 2009, right after Barack Obama took office on a campaign promise (among many others) to have the agency author such a rule. It was "long past time" for action on combustible dust, he had noted during his campaigning in 2008. Issued during Thanksgiving week this year when few were around the ...

December 9, 2014

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Amazon Workers Unpaid for Security Lines | WWC

A unanimous Supreme Court decision issued today declared that Amazon warehouse workers who are forced to stand in line for security checks upon leaving their worksite are no longer on the clock, and thus the time spent in line is not compensable. Amazon requires those who work in its warehouses to go through security checks on the way out to ensure they haven't pilfered any products. Warehous...

December 8, 2014

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DOL: 1,000 Wage & Hour Inspectors Active | WWC

Speaking Dec. 4 at the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C., Secretary Tom Perez told attendees that the Department of Labor (DOL) now has 1,000 Wage and Hour (WHD) investigators aggressively enforcing the nation's pay, overtime and worker classification laws. That figure is up from the 730 investigators the Obama administration inherited. The DOL is “back in the enforcement busine...

December 4, 2014

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Workplace Injury, Illness Rate Declines, But OSHA Ups Reporting Requirements

David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, today issued the following statement on the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2013 Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses: "Today we learned that, in 2013, approximately three million private sector workers in America experienced a serious injury or illness on the job. In this extraordinarily h...

December 4, 2014

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Senate Confirms Two to the EEOC | WWC

Still under Democratic control for a while longer, the U.S. Senate has confirmed a new Commissioner for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), along with a General Counsel. Charlotte Burrows, currently Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice (DOJ), will serve as a Commissioner. David Lopez was reconfirmed as General Counsel, a position he has held since 2010...

December 3, 2014

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DOL Announces Rule to Protect Against Sexual Orientation, Gender ID Discrimination

A new rule prohibiting discrimination on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity in the federal contracting workforce is being announced today by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The rule implements Executive Order 13672, which was signed by President Obama on July 21. "Americans believe in fairness and opportunity. No one should live in fear of being fired or passed over or dis...

December 2, 2014

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35 U.S. Hospitals Named Ebola Centers | WWC

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), state health officials have now identified and designated 35 hospitals as Ebola treatment centers, with more expected in the coming weeks. Hospitals with Ebola treatment centers have been designated by state health officials to serve as treatment facilities for Ebola patients based on a collaborative decision with local health ...

December 2, 2014

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HHS Report Touts Benefits of Obamacare | WWC

A report released today by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shows an estimated 50,000 fewer patients died in hospitals and approximately $12 billion in health care costs were saved as a result of a reduction in hospital-acquired conditions from 2010 to 2013. According to the report, progress toward a safer health care system occurred during a period of concerted attention by h...

December 1, 2014

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DOL 'Interpretations' Go Before High Court Today | WWC

The Department of Labor (DOL) is the subject of a Supreme Court review today in the case of Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Association (Thomas Perez is DOL Secretary), with arguments focusing on whether a federal agency can issue "interpretations" of existing laws and regulations without conducting a public commentary period. The Mortgage Bankers Association brought suit when the DOL reinterpreted ...

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