Articles Tagged with ''Department of Labor''

The U.S. Department of Labor issued a press release and accompanying blog post to announce the launch of the Apprentice Trailblazer Initiative, which is intended to create a national network of apprentices and apprenticeship graduates whose stories may inspire others interested in becoming apprentices.

The U.S. Department of Labor released its 812-page pre-publication version of the final rule to modernize Davis-Bacon prevailing wage that SWACCA has been engaged on dating back to the Biden presidential transition. The final rule represents the most sweeping overhaul of Davis-Bacon regulations since the Reagan Administration.

Aug. 8’s announcement makes some improvements but critically misses an opportunity to improve the wage determination process and further burdens overregulated construction contractors building and upgrading the nation’s infrastructure.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration announced three upcoming health benefits laws compliance seminars in August and September in Arizona, Colorado and Nevada. The seminars are partnerships between DOL and state insurance agencies to provide practical information, helpful tips and important clarifications regarding state and federal health benefits laws.

The U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury announced the issuance of a proposed rule to strengthen regulations under the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which aims to ensure that access to mental health and substance use disorder benefits through health insurers is not more restrictive than access to medical and surgical benefits.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a final rule that will require employers in designated high-hazard industries, like construction, to electronically submit injury and illness information to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

On March 28, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee voted 12-9 to advance the SWACCA-supported nomination of Jessica Looman to serve as Administrator of the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced May 1 that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration has begun a National Emphasis Program to prevent falls, the leading cause of fatal workplace injuries and the violation the agency cites most frequently in construction industry inspections.

On Feb. 22, two Wisconsin-based 401(k) plan participants filed suit against the U.S. Department of Labor in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin over the agency’s Dec. 1, 2022, environmental, social and governance retirement investing rule, entitled “Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights.”

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a new initiative to promote equal opportunity by federal contractors in the construction trades on large federally funded projects and help bring more underrepresented communities into the workforce.