Biden Administration’s Independent Contractor Rule Goes Into Effect
On March 11, 2024, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division’s (WHD) final rule for determining whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor became effective. The final rule rescinds DOL’s 2021 regulation that was published at the end of the Trump administration and establishes a new test to determine worker classification. […]
OSHA Focusing on Regional Fatality and Injury Rates in Tree Care
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) utilizes various strategies to mitigate workplace hazards and ensure compliance with safety standards. One approach is the implementation of Regional Emphasis Programs (REPs). REPs are primarily targeted enforcement and inspections in specific high-risk industries or for particular hazards within a region. As of the end of 2023, OSHA […]
Biden Administration Updates Its Regulatory Plan
On December 6, 2023, the Biden administration released its Fall 2023 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, providing a detailed glimpse into the initiatives under development across approximately 67 federal departments, agencies and commissions. These semi-annual regulatory agendas report on what these agencies plan to issue in the near and long term. Target dates […]
TCIA Joins Comments on OSHA’s Proposed Worker Walkaround Rule
On November 13, 2023, the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA) and 73 other organizations joined comments, led by the Coalition for Workplace Safety (CWS), in response to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Proposed Worker Walkaround Representative Designation Process Rule. The proposal seeks to amend OSHA’s existing regulation governing the participation of third parties […]
Last Call for Comments on Heat-Injury-and-Illness Rulemaking Report
On November 3, 2023, the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Advocacy, as part of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process, transmitted its final report to Doug Parker, Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), on the agency’s upcoming rulemaking, “Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor […]