Legal and compliance
Workplace notices, government contractor obligations and regulatory compliance.
10 records
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Comments due
Department of Homeland Security proposes ending deference to prior approvals when reviewing Form I-129 worker extension petitions
- What changed
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to remove the regulation that tells U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers to defer to a prior approval when reviewing a Form I-129 petition to extend a foreign worker's employment or stay. Officers could still consider a prior approval, but would no longer start from deference to it.
- Who's affected
- Employers that file Form I-129 extension petitions for nonimmigrant workers (for example H-1B, L-1, O-1, E and TN workers), and those workers. DHS expects more requests for evidence and longer processing for some extensions.
- What to do
- This proposed rule creates no new duties for employers now. Employers that want to weigh in can comment through regulations.gov by November 13, 2026, and may want to plan for fuller, earlier extension filings in case the proposal becomes final.
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Comments due
Department of Homeland Security proposes ending the up to 60-day grace period for visa workers whose job ends
- What changed
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to end the up to 60-day grace period that lets workers in the E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 and TN (Canadian and Mexican professional) classifications, and their dependents, keep their status after a job ends. It is a proposal, not a final rule.
- Who's affected
- Employers that sponsor or hire workers in these classifications, mostly H-1B employers, and especially employers that hire workers between jobs. Employers of dependent spouses who are authorized to work could also be affected.
- What to do
- This proposed rule creates no new duties for employers, and nothing changes unless DHS issues a final rule. Employers that rely on the grace period may want to comment by November 10, 2026, and plan for a possible final rule.
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Comments due
Department of Homeland Security proposes $70,000 and $30,000 school fees for Optional Practical Training of F-1 students
- What changed
- The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes that schools certified by its Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) pay $70,000 before recommending an F-1 student for Optional Practical Training (OPT) for the first time, and $30,000 for each later OPT recommendation. This is a proposal only.
- Who's affected
- The fees would fall on SEVP-certified schools, not employers, but DHS says schools may pass the cost to students or employers. Employers that hire F-1 students on OPT, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) OPT extensions, could see fewer candidates or higher costs.
- What to do
- This proposed rule creates no duties for employers now. If you rely on OPT or STEM OPT workers, consider reviewing that reliance and commenting by November 9, 2026.
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Effective
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs removes Executive Order 11246 affirmative action and nondiscrimination rules for federal contractors
- What changed
- The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), part of the Department of Labor, issued a final rule that removes the regulations carrying out Executive Order 11246, effective October 26, 2026. The President revoked that order on January 21, 2025, and the Department says it has not enforced these rules since.
- Who's affected
- Federal contractors and subcontractors, including federally assisted construction contractors, that were covered by Executive Order 11246. The Department estimates about 107,165 supply and service entities and 9,982 construction contractors, employing about 32 million workers.
- What to do
- Nothing new is required. Written affirmative action programs, placement and participation goals, and other Executive Order 11246 duties go away. Consider updating contractor compliance processes, while keeping in mind that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and state and local laws still apply, and that OFCCP keeps its hearing procedures for veterans and disability cases.
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Published
Wage and Hour Division withdraws its proposal to remove Fair Labor Standards Act interpretive guidance from federal regulations
- What changed
- The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) withdrew, as of October 6, 2026, its 2025 proposal to take certain Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) interpretive guidance out of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). That rulemaking is now over.
- Who's affected
- Employers and advisers who use the WHD interpretive guidance on FLSA topics found in the CFR, or who were tracking the 2025 proposal. The guidance was not removed.
- What to do
- This withdrawal creates no new duties for employers. You may want to note that the proposal is closed and keep watching for any new WHD action on its interpretive guidance.
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Comments due
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission proposes overhaul of the federal employee discrimination complaint process
- What changed
- The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) proposes to overhaul how federal agencies handle equal employment opportunity (EEO) complaints from their own employees and applicants. It would end mandatory counseling before a complaint, end automatic hearings before an administrative judge and administrative class complaints, and add Cummings Act notice, reporting and tracking duties.
- Who's affected
- Federal agencies as employers, and their employees and applicants. The proposal says it would not directly regulate private employers or state, local or tribal governments.
- What to do
- Nothing is required yet. Federal agency EEO, HR and legal teams can comment by September 28, 2026, and can start mapping which procedures, notices and systems would change. Private employers have no action under this proposal.
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Effective
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs removes disability self-identification and 7 percent utilization requirements for federal contractors
- What changed
- The Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued a final rule ending the Section 503 requirement to invite applicants and employees to self-identify disability status (Form CC-305), the related data computations, and the 7 percent utilization goal and analyses. OFCCP says those requirements conflict with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- Who's affected
- Federal contractors and subcontractors with contracts over $20,000. The largest effect is on those with 50 or more employees and a contract of $50,000 or more, which must keep an affirmative action program.
- What to do
- This rule creates no new duties. From September 21, 2026, it removes the self-identification and utilization requirements and no longer requires contractors to consider counts of individuals with disabilities when assessing outreach. The nondiscrimination, reasonable accommodation, outreach, documentation and audit duties that remain still apply.
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Effective
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs updates veterans' affirmative action rules to remove Executive Order 11246 references and reflect the $200,000 contract threshold
- What changed
- The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) finalized technical changes to its Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) rules, effective September 21, 2026. The changes remove references to the revoked Executive Order 11246, move enforcement hearing procedures into the VEVRAA rules, and update the contract threshold from $150,000 to $200,000.
- Who's affected
- Federal contractors and subcontractors holding a contract of $200,000 or more. Those that also have 50 or more employees keep their affirmative action program (AAP) duties.
- What to do
- This rule creates no new duties for employers. Covered contractors may want to confirm which contracts meet the $200,000 threshold and update subcontract clauses, policies and record retention schedules that still use the old $150,000 figure or cite Executive Order 11246 procedures.
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Effective
Employee Benefits Security Administration and partner agencies correct errors in the federal independent dispute resolution rule
- What changed
- Four federal agencies, including the Employee Benefits Security Administration at the Department of Labor, corrected typos and omissions in their June 4, 2026 final rule on the federal independent dispute resolution (IDR) process for out-of-network payment disputes. The agencies say the corrections make no substantive policy changes.
- Who's affected
- Employers that sponsor group health plans, especially self-insured plans, along with insurers, providers and facilities that take part in the federal IDR process.
- What to do
- This correction creates no new duties for employers. If your plan takes part in federal IDR disputes, consider making sure your insurer or third party administrator works from the corrected rule text, which applies beginning August 3, 2026.
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Effective
National Labor Relations Board restores the 2020 joint employer rule after a court vacated the 2023 standard
- What changed
- The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) put its 2020 joint employer rule back into the regulations. The 2023 rule that replaced it was struck down by a court before it ever took effect, so the standard employers were actually subject to does not change.
- Who's affected
- Private employers whose work is done by another company's employees, through staffing agencies, contractors or franchising, and the companies that employ those workers.
- What to do
- Nothing is required. If you rely on another company's workers, it is worth reviewing where you set or control their wages, hours, hiring, discipline or supervision.