Articles by Girish Anand

July 6, 2017

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A Second Circuit Court Declares DOL's Tip Pool Rule Invalid

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has joined the 4th in deciding the 2011 tip pool rule by the Department of Labor (DOL) is invalid. The rule prohibits employers from sharing tips received by tipped employees such as servers with non-tipped employees such as dishwashers. The restaurants have fought back, arguing in court that this goes against the language of the Fair Labor Standards Act ...

July 6, 2017

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Trump Nominates Business-Friendly Attorney to NLRB

President Trump has nominated William J. Emanuel to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to fill the expiring post of Vice Chair Kent Yoshiho Hirozawa. If confirmed by the Senate, Emanuel would serve a term of five years, expiring on Aug. 21, 2021. Emanuel has argued cases before the NLRB for many years on issues such as employee class and collective action waivers. Multiple cases he was ...

July 3, 2017

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OSHA to Seek Public Input on Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP)

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will hold a stakeholder meeting July 17, 2017, in Washington, D.C., to discuss the future direction of the agency’s Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP). The discussion will include comments and suggestions from the public on potential avenues for action. OSHA is seeking to reshape VPP so that it continues to represent safety and health e...

June 30, 2017

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DOL Wants Salary Level to Determine Overtime Eligibility

The Department of Labor (DOL) today asked the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to clarify its authority to establish a salary threshold for determining overtime eligibility, but did not endorse the Obama-era proposed salary level of $47,476 a year. In a brief filed in the ongoing appeal over an injunction blocking President Obama's effort to raise the threshold, the DOL asked the court to “address...

June 30, 2017

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DOL Opens Up Commentary on Revision of Fiduciary Rule

The Department of Labor (DOL) has published a Request for Information (RFI) related to the fiduciary rule. The RFI is an opportunity for the public to provide data and information that may be used to revise the rule and associated exemptions. There is a 15-day comment period regarding extending the Jan. 1, 2018 applicability date of certain aspects, and a 30-day comment period on all other iss...

June 29, 2017

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Trump Nominates Janet Dhillon as Chair of EEOC

President Trump on Monday created some new beltway waves when he nominated outsider Janet Dhillon, currently an executive vice president and general counsel at Burlington Stores Inc., to be chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). If confirmed by the Senate, she would replace Victoria Lipnic, currently acting chair, who would remain as a commissioner. Dhillon previously se...

June 28, 2017

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OSHA Proposes Extension of Deadline for Electronic Reporting, Seeks Comments

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (SHA) has proposed a delay in the electronic reporting compliance date of the rule Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses from July 1, 2017, to Dec. 1, 2017. The proposed delay will allow OSHA an opportunity to further review and consider the rule. The agency published the final rule on May 12, 2016, and has determined that a fur...

June 28, 2017

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Private Insurers Pay Twice (or More) for Physician, Hospital Services than Medicare

At the same time that it issued its assessment of the Senate's new health care plan, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a related report comparing physician and hospital costs when paid by private insurers and when paid by Medicare and Medicare Advantage. The CBO found the average commercial payment rate for hospital admission was $21,400 in 2013, compared to $11,400 for a Medicare...

June 27, 2017

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DOL Reinstates Use of Opinion Letters

The Department of Labor (DOL) will reinstate the issuance of opinion letters, Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta announced today. The action allows the department’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) to use opinion letters as one of its methods for providing guidance to covered employers and employees. An opinion letter is an official, written opinion by the Wage and Hour Division of how a particul...

June 27, 2017

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Study of Seattle Minimum Wage Hike Shows Negative Results

A study of the effects of Seattle's effort to phase in a $15-an-hour minimum wage found that so far, with the minimum wage no higher than $13, low-wage earners have suffered an average loss of $125 a month due to decreased hours and staffing cuts. Specifically, the 2014 bump in the minimum wage resulted in a 3 percent wage increase but was accompanied by a 9 percent reduction in hours worked, ...

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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