By Lawrence Z. Lorber, Annette Tyman, Jaclyn W. Hamlin, and Brent I. Clark

BLACKLISTEDSeyfarth Synopsis: By a vote of 49-48 on March 6, 2017, by the U.S. Senate, both Houses of Congress have now moved to rescind the regulations issued pursuant to President Obama’s Executive Order 13678, entitled Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces but popularly referred to as the “Blacklisting” Order, which required government contractors to report all potential labor violations as well as disclose the basis of pay to employees working on government contracts.  If President Trump signs the rescission resolution, as he is expected to do, the regulations will be rescinded. Under the Congressional Review Act, if a regulation is subject to rescission, the Executive Branch cannot reissue the same or similar regulation absent legislative authorization.

For our readers that are interested in occupational safety and health topics, we are blogging this link to our colleagues “One Minute Memo”, with this introductory note. OSHA citations are covered among the labor laws covered by Executive Order 13673 (Blacklisting Order). The way the Blacklisting Order read was that the covered violations included citations which were not final, which were being contested by the employer, and which may ultimately be withdrawn through settlement or by a Judge once  the employer had a chance to present its defense.  The Blacklisting Order was another example of the Obama Administration’s “guilty until proven innocent” approach to regulating businesses and employers.

For more information on this or any related topic please contact the authors, your Seyfarth attorney, or any member of the OFCCP & Affirmative Action Compliance Team, the Workplace Safety and Health (OSHA/MSHA) Team, or the Workplace Policies and Handbooks Team.