The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued a Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) explaining that the WHD will not enforce the Biden-era SWACCA-supported independent contractor rule that made it harder to classify construction workers as independent contractors. Per the FAB, while a number of lawsuits challenging the legality of the Biden-era independent contractor rule are pending, the WHD will no longer apply the rule’s analysis when determining independent contractor status in Fair Labor Standards Act investigations. Instead, the WHD said it will rely on longstanding principles outlined in Fact Sheet #13 available here and further informed by the reinstated WHD Opinion Letter FLSA2019-6, which address classification in the context of virtual marketplace platforms.
WHD explains that this approach is intended “to provide greater clarity for businesses and workers navigating modern work arrangements while legal and regulatory questions are resolved.” The move comes after the Trump Administration requested delays in several pending lawsuits against the SWACCA-supported independent contractor rule as the Department of Labor reviewed the rule for “potential recission.”