On Oct. 25, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division announced it is extending the comment deadline on the ABC-opposed independent contractor proposed rule from Nov. 28 to Dec. 13 in order to allow sufficient time for parties to file initial comments.

On Oct. 19, ABC urged the DOL to extend the comment period by 60 days, stating, “ABC represents a large number of contractors and subcontractors who will be significantly impacted by this new proposed rule. Due to the complexity of the issues included in the 58-page proposal, the current 45-day comment period does not allow sufficient time for ABC to fully analyze the rulemaking as well as effectively communicate the broad scope of issues with its members before providing comments.”

ABC plans to submit comments opposing the new proposal, and members are encouraged to do so as well. 

Background:

On Oct. 11, the DOL announced a new proposal to rescind and replace a commonsense, ABC-supported 2021 final rule on independent contractors.

ABC issued the following statement in response to the DOL’s announcement:

“ABC is deeply disappointed that the Biden DOL is moving forward with a proposed rule that will disrupt legitimate independent contractors, which are an essential component of the construction industry,” said Ben Brubeck, ABC vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs. “Independent contractors provide specialized skills, entrepreneurial opportunities and stability during fluctuations of work common to construction. Rescinding the commonsense 2021 final rule will increase the confusion and litigation chaos that has bedeviled the regulated community for years. Any effort by DOL to undermine the use of independent contractors in the rulemaking will likely be challenged by ABC and other stakeholders.”

ABC is one of the co-plaintiffs that successfully sued the Biden administration’s DOL for attempting to delay and rescind the commonsense 2021 independent contractor final rule. Under the March 2022 decision issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, the 2021 final rule went into effect as scheduled on March 8, 2021, and is currently in effect.

To learn more about the DOL’s new proposed rule, see ABC general counsel Littler Mendelson’s analysis.

Continue to monitor Newsline for future updates.