Articles by Girish Anand

August 2, 2017

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UPS Settles Lawsuit over Its 12-Month Leave Policy for $1.7 Million

United Parcel Service (UPS) has settled for $1.7 million a lawsuit begun in 2009 over its 12-month leave policy, which on the surface sounds generous but which the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) found in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The UPS policy allowed employees to take a full 12 months off without pay for medical leave, but if they failed to retur...

July 31, 2017

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DOL Hopes Agreement with Sonic Becomes Fast Food Industry Standard

The Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) and Sonic Industries Services Inc. – franchiser of the SONIC Drive-In restaurant chain – have signed a voluntary agreement to help SONIC’s independently owned and operated franchise locations comply with federal labor laws. As part of the agreement, the Oklahoma City-based franchiser will provide a forum and the resources needed...

July 26, 2017

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OSHA Issues Guide on Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published a guide to help businesses comply with its new standard on exposure to respirable crystalline silica dust, a known carcinogen that can lead to silicosis, a lung disease. OSHA estimates that 2.3 million workers are exposed to the dust, including 2 million construction workers. The booklet advises that the standard, publish...

July 26, 2017

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HHS Improves HIPAA Breach Web Reporting Tool

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) have launched a revised web tool that puts important information into the hands of individuals, empowering them to better identify recent breaches of health information and to learn how all breaches of health information are investigated and successfully resolved. The HIPAA Breach Reporting Tool (HBRT)...

July 25, 2017

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Labor Secretary Aims at Professional Licensing Deregulation

Speaking in Denver about apprenticeships, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta pointed to licensing requirements as a barrier to employment that need to be streamlined. He noted that only one in 20 professions in the 1950s required licensing, but today it's one in four. Appearing at the American Legislative Executive Council's annual confab, Acosta noted that “the growth of occupational licensing ...

July 25, 2017

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DOL to Seek Public Input on Creating a New Overtime Rule

The Department of Labor (DOL) announced it will publish a Request for Information (RFI) for the overtime rule on Wednesday, July 26, 2017. The RFI is an opportunity for the public to provide information that will aid the department in formulating a proposal to revise these regulations that define and delimit exemptions from the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and overtime requirements f...

July 24, 2017

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Labor Secretary Forming an Apprenticeship Task Force

Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta is inviting interested persons to submit nominations for individuals to serve on the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion. The creation of the task force is a key step in implementing President Donald J. Trump’s executive order to expand apprenticeships, according to a Department of Labor (DOL) news release. “Apprenticeships are a cornerstone of President ...

July 24, 2017

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CMS Seeks More Control Over Medicare Advantage Plans

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is seeking public comment before it submits a proposal for more review power over Medicare Advantage plans in order “to provide adequate access to covered services to meet the needs of the population served.” The CMS says it will submit the broader review plan to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on Aug. 18 for approval. Currently, ...

July 18, 2017

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Senate Republicans' Repeal-Only Effort Collapses on the Heels of 'Repeal and Replace'

Less than a day after more Republican defections doomed the Senate's "repeal and replace" health care legislation, the option of "repeal now and replace later" went down in flames as well. Three GOP Senators immediately said they couldn't vote for a repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare) without a replacement. Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Shelley Moore Capito, (W.V.) and Lisa Mu...

July 18, 2017

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Senate Republicans Give Up on 'Repeal and Replace'

With the defection of two more Senate Republicans from the effort to repeal and replace Obamacare, the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 has been withdrawn from a vote. On Monday, Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Jerry Moran (Kan.) issued statements declaring they would not vote for the revamped measure. They thus joined Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Susan Collins (Maine) in opposing the measure, le...

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About author

Girish Anand

Recent Articles

Practical articles on HR, Safety, compliance, and people operations—written for real businesses, not legal textbooks.

U.S. Department of Labor Officially Restores Prior Overtime Exemption Rules

On May 14th, 2026, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it has officially rescinded the 2024 overtime exemption rules. Specifically, the WHD published a technical amendment to restore previous 2019 regulations that dictated overtime exemptions for...

NLRB General Counsel Takes Action to Tackle Current Case Backlog

On May 6th, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and NLRB General Counsel Crystal Stowe Carey announced the bulk transfer of thousands of labor practice cases. Specifically, this action fulfills an initiative signed by the NLRB General Counsel earlier this year. Overall, the initiative...

Privacy Agency Invites Comments from Businesses on the CCPA’s Usage of Personal Data

Recently, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) issued a call for comments on the current state of personal data collection under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Specifically, the invitation to deliver remarks was issued on April 20th, 2026. The information provided by the...

DOL Proposes New Joint Employer Rule To Unify Standards Under Federal Labor Laws

In April 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a proposed rule to establish a single, clear standard for determining when joint-employer status applies under three major federal laws: the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and the Migrant and Seasonal...

DOL Updates Enforcement Approach for Employee Benefit Plans: What Employers Should Know

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced a significant change in its enforcement of employee benefit plan rules. The DOL will now focus more closely on serious violations that harm workers and retirees, meaning compliant employers may face less scrutiny under the updated approach.

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Articles by Girish Anand