Expert Compliance Insights & Tips for Businesses

April 22, 2013

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HHS Proposes Rule to Ease HIPAA Barriers on Gun Background Checks

Responding to concerns that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule is preventing states from reporting relevant information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), which is used to clear or disbar people from making gun purchases, the Department of Human Services (HHS) will seek public input on what should be done. In the Federal ...

April 22, 2013

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DOL Proposes to Add More Whistleblower Agents

Under the Obama adminnistration's proposed 2014 budget for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the whistleblower program would hire 47 new staff members with a $5.9 million increase in its funding to $21.8. Meanwhile, the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) would be cut by 33 positions. Explained OSHA head David Michaels: “To focus on the integrity ...

April 18, 2013

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OSHA Publishes Fact Sheet for Training of Workers on New Hazard Communiciation Standard

By Dec. 1, 2013, employers must have trained their workforces on the revised Hazard Communication Standard that was published in the Federal Register in March 2012. Specifically, workers must be trained on the labeling elements for the Safety Data Sheets (SDSs) that will accompany workplace chemicals under the revised standard. To aid in the educational process, which should begin soon to...

April 17, 2013

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New Mexico, Utah Ban Employer Requests for Social Media Access

Following the failure of Congress in 2012 to pass legislation barring employers from seeking social media account information from job applicants and employees, the states are moving quickly to enact such legislation. New Mexico and Utah are the latest to ban employers from seeking passwords and other social media information, though the New Mexico law appears to apply only to applicants,...

April 12, 2013

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USCIS Corrects Mandatory Date for New Form I-9 Use to May 7

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) this week corrected the effective date of its new Form I-9, which was launched March 8, 2013. In its original statement, the USCIS said that older forms could not be used after May 7, 2013. In its correction, the agency clarified that the old forms could no longer be used commencing May 7. The form that must be used beginning May 7 ...

April 11, 2013

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Obama Budget Seeks Increase for Labor Department Enforcement Agencies

The Obama administration is proposing a $12.1-billion budget for the Department of Labor (DOL) for Fiscal Year 2014, starting this October. That represents an increase of $20 million. But when in comes to the enforcing agencies with the DOL, including the Wage and Hour Division (WHD), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and others, the increase is $37.7 million, out of a t...

April 10, 2013

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Obama Renominates NLRB Chairman Pearce, Nominates Two Republicans for Board

President Obama has renominated Mark Gaston Pearce as chairman of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). He also named two Republicans to the board, labor attorneys Harry I. Johnson III and Philip A. Miscimarra. Earlier this year, the president renominated Democrats Sharon Block and Richard Giffin to the NLRB after a federal court ruled their recess appointments were unconstitutional, calli...

April 8, 2013

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DOJ to Introduce Proposed Rule on Website Accessibility

The Department of Justice (DOJ) in July intends to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to apply American with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility guidelines to state and federal government websites. "Many states and localities have begun to improve the accessibility of portions of their websites," the DOJ explained. "However, full compliance with the ADA's promise...

April 6, 2013

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Cal/OSHA Launches Its Heat Illness Prevention Program

Cal/OSHA has launched its 2013 Heat Illness Prevention Program to educate workers and employers on the dangers associated with heat exposure at outdoor work sites. The launch was announced at a training program sponsored by Cal/OSHA, the Nisei Farmers League and other agricultural employers. The goal is to prevent heat illness throughout California through greater compliance with the state'...

April 2, 2013

26 view(s)

OSHA Publishes Combustible Dust Handbook

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today published "Firefighting Precautions at Facilities with Combustible Dust," a new, informative booklet that outlines safe procedures for emergency responders who may face fires and explosions caused by combustible dust. "This booklet will keep both emergency response and facility workers safe by giving them a framework ...

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