Articles by Girish Anand

January 27, 2017

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President Names Miscimarra Acting Chairman of NLRB

President Donald J. Trump has named board member Philip A. Miscimarra Acting Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). “It is an honor to be named NLRB Acting Chairman by the president,” Miscimarra said. “I remain committed to the task that Congress has assigned to the board, which is to foster stability and to apply the National Labor Relations Act in an even-handed manner that s...

January 27, 2017

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Trump Orders Obamacare Advertising to Stop

In the few days remaining before Affordable Care Act (ACA, aka Obamacare) enrollment ends on Jan. 31, President Trump has ordered the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to pull all advertising for the health care program. HHS spokespersons refused to confirm the White House order, but those speaking anonymously said the directive included pulling advertisements that have already bee...

January 26, 2017

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DOJ Asks for Delay in Overtime Rule Appeal to Reconsider Whether to Proceed

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Jan. 25 asked the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals for a 30-day delay in submitting its brief in the ongoing appeal of a federal judge's injunction that stopped a new overtime rule from taking effect on Dec. 1, 2016. The delay is meant to give the Trump administration time to consider its next move -- whether to continue the proceedings or drop the issue. Th...

January 26, 2017

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Lipnic Named Acting Chair of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has announced that President Trump named Commissioner Victoria A. Lipnic Acting Chair of EEOC. Lipnic has served as an EEOC Commissioner since 2010, having been nominated to serve by President Barack Obama, and confirmed by the Senate, initially for a term ending on July 1, 2015. President Obama nominated her to serve a second term ending on Ju...

January 25, 2017

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Trump Issues Gag Order on Federal Agencies -- Or Not?

Various media reports maintain that both the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Agriculture have received memos from the White House forbidding them to send out press releases, make new blog posts or engage in social media. Furthermore, the EPA has been told to cease issuing grants and contracts. It's unclear if any other government agencies have been similarly curtail...

January 23, 2017

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Trump Orders Federal Hiring Freeze and Withdraws from TPP

On the first day of his first workweek in office, President Trump ordered a federal hiring freeze at all entities except the military. He also signed an order withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a controversial trade agreement between the U.S. and several Asian nations that both Bernie Sanders and (reluctantly) Hillary Clinton opposed in their presidential campaigns. The hiri...

January 21, 2017

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New Form I-9 Must Be Used Starting Today

The revised "smart" version of the Employment Verification Form I-9 must be used beginning today, Jan. 22, even though it's a Sunday and unlikely that many new hires would start work today. Form I-9 came about as a result of the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 1986, when President Ronald Reagan and the Congress granted amnesty to all undocumented aliens. The vetting process under ...

January 21, 2017

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Death by a Thousand Cuts -- or One Executive Action -- to Obamacare

Shortly after signing an executive order barring any new regulations by federal agencies, President Donald J. Trump signed another order that mandates his agencies to “to waive, defer, grant exemptions from or delay the implementation of any provision or requirement of the [Affordable Care] Act [ACA]” that they deem to burden individuals, insurers, health-care providers, or states." Both the i...

January 20, 2017

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Trump's First Act as President Is to Delay All New Regulations

Hours after being sworn in and after having blasted the Washington, D.C., establishment in his inaugural address for having enriched themselves at the expense of American workers, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order banning federal agencies from issuing new regulations for 60 days. It is expected that, in his first week in office, he will issue further executive orders undoing ...

January 19, 2017

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OSHA Adjusts 2017 Penalties for Inflation

On Wednesday, Jan. 18, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a final rule to adjust its monetary fine levels for inflation, which it can do by Jan. 15 of each year under terms of 2016's Inflation Adjustment Act. The new fines, according to the final rule, became effective on Jan. 13, 2017. The 2017 maximum penalties are as follows: Other-than-Serious: $12,675 ...

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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