WASHINGTON, July 17—Associated Builders and Contractors today issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement that it is rescinding the final persuader rule:

“Associated Builders and Contractors commends the Trump administration for following through on its promise to rescind the persuader rule,” said ABC Vice President of Regulatory, Labor & State Affairs Ben Brubeck. “The rule would have effectively limited the ability of employers, particularly small businesses, to obtain labor relations advice from attorneys and trade associations like ABC, and in turn deprived employees of their right to obtain balanced information about union representation.”

ABC opposed the persuader rule when it was first proposed in 2011 and expressed its opposition through:  

  Comments submitted to DOL in September 2011;
  A letter sent to DOL in February 2014;
  A December 2015 letter to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs from a coalition of                    business groups including 29 ABC chapters;
  A January 2016 meeting with OIRA officials;
  A lawsuit filed in March 2016; and
  Comments submitted to DOL in August 2017.