Batch of FLSA Opinion Letters Issued by DOL in Trump’s Waning Weeks Could Be Withdrawn

You are probably aware that through the four years of the Trump Administration, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (DOL-WHD) was among the busiest DOL subagencies in terms of pursuing an active policy agenda, including issuance of several significant regulations. WHD was also busy issuing so-called opinion letters, including 72 opinions interpreting the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and 6 interpreting the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

As the Trump Administration wound down, WHD was particularly busy in issuing several new FLSA opinion letters in an effort to lock in enforcement policy positions. It should come as no surprise, however, that policies and interpretations adopted by DOL during the Trump Administration may be at odds with the views of the Biden Administration, which has the absolute discretion to withdraw an opinion letter with which it disagrees. In fact, five FLSA opinion letters issued by the Trump WHD have already been withdrawn.

Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.