{"id":69309,"date":"2025-05-07T14:14:34","date_gmt":"2025-05-07T18:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/?p=69309"},"modified":"2025-05-07T14:14:38","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T18:14:38","slug":"dol-issues-guidance-on-independent-contractor-misclassification-enforcement","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/news\/dol-issues-guidance-on-independent-contractor-misclassification-enforcement\/","title":{"rendered":"DOL Issues Guidance on Independent Contractor Misclassification Enforcement"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"69309\" class=\"elementor elementor-69309\" data-elementor-post-type=\"news\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-da99d29 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"da99d29\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2c0f238 e-grid e-con-full e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2c0f238\" data-element_type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6c1bba9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6c1bba9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<style><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span>.col-grd{display: grid;grid-template-columns: 6fr 6fr;}.col-grd ul li{margin: 0;}.high-lights{background-color:#f0eff7;padding:15px;}.high-lights ul li {margin: 0px !important;}.high-lights h5{font-size:24px;color: #b27bb0;}<\/style>\n\nOn <strong>May 1, 2025<\/strong>, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/sites\/dolgov\/files\/WHD\/fab\/fab2025-1.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2025-1<\/a>, outlining the criteria the agency will use for determining employee or independent contractor status when enforcing the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Specifically, DOL instructs field agents not to apply the 2024 Rule in current enforcement matters while the Department considers future action.\n<h4><strong>Background<\/strong><\/h4>\nOn January 10, 2024, the Biden Administration published a final rule revising Department of Labor (DOL) guidance on determining whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This 2024 Rule rescinded the first Trump Administration\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.federalregister.gov\/documents\/2021\/01\/07\/2020-29274\/independent-contractor-status-under-the-fair-labor-standards-act\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">2021 Independent Contractor Rule<\/a>. Several lawsuits are pending in federal courts challenging the 2024 Rule. In those lawsuits, the current Trump Administration DOL has taken the position that it is reconsidering the 2024 Rule, including whether to rescind it. Additionally, the DOL\u2019s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is currently developing a standard for determining employee versus independent contractor status under the FLSA.\n<h4><strong>Enforcement Guidance\n<\/strong><\/h4>\nWhile the DOL reviews the 2024 Rule, DOL field guidance states, \u201cagency investigators are directed not to apply the 2024 Rule\u2019s analysis in current enforcement matters.\u201d Instead, the WHD will rely on principles outlined in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/sites\/dolgov\/files\/WHD\/fact-sheets\/whdfs13.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Fact Sheet #13<\/a> and the reinstated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dol.gov\/sites\/dolgov\/files\/WHD\/opinion-letters\/FLSA\/FLSA2019-6.pdf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Opinion Letter FLSA2019-6<\/a>, which addresses independent contractor\/employee classification in the context of virtual marketplace platforms. According to the DOL, this approach will provide greater clarity for businesses and workers while legal and regulatory questions are resolved.\n<h4><strong>Employer Takeaway\n<\/strong><\/h4>\nThe DOL\u2019s new guidance does not alter existing regulations but reflects the Department&#8217;s approach to enforcement during the review of the 2024 Rule. The FAB supersedes any prior or conflicting guidance provided to the WHD staff on enforcement related to independent contractor misclassification. Until further action is taken, the 2024 Rule remains in effect for purposes of private litigation, and the FAB does not change the rights of employees or the responsibilities of employers under the FLSA. Employers, therefore, may want to consult with their legal counsel if necessary and continue to monitor the situation for updates.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-339e87b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"339e87b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"high-lights\">\n<span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><strong>HIGHLIGHTS<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n\n<hr \/>\n\n<div class=\"col-grd\">\n<div class=\"col-1\">\n<ul>\n \t<li>On <strong>Jan. 10, 2024<\/strong>, the DOL published a final rule revising the agency\u2019s guidance on how to analyze who is an employee or independent contractor under the FLSA.<\/li>\n \t<li>On <strong>March 11, 2024<\/strong>, the final rule became effective.<\/li>\n \t<li>On <strong>May 1, 2025<\/strong>, DOL issued FAB 2025-1 to provide guidance to field agents on how to determine employee or independent contractor status when enforcing the FLSA.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"featured_media":69318,"parent":0,"template":"","topics":[44],"news-topics":[],"member-content":[],"class_list":["post-69309","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","topics-legal-legislative"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/69309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topics?post=69309"},{"taxonomy":"news-topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topics?post=69309"},{"taxonomy":"member-content","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techservealliance.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/member-content?post=69309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}