July 19th, 2017
Bloomberg: White House Working to Address Joint Employer Issue, Pence Says
The Trump administration is working to unwind the controversial expansion of joint employer liability for businesses in franchise and other affiliated relationships, Vice President Mike Pence told a retail industry lobbying group July 18.
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Critics say the decision—and moves to broaden joint employer liability under other federal and state laws—could change the way companies in franchise, staffing, and other contractual relationships do business by forcing them to take a more active role in labor issues.
“As we speak, our administration is rolling back the joint employer rule,” Pence said during remarks at a National Retail Federation event.
Pence was referring to the Labor Department’s recent decision to withdraw an informal Obama-era guidance document, spokesman Marc Lotter told Bloomberg BNA July 18. The DOL in that document took an expansive view of joint employer liability under federal wage-and-hour law.
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Pence’s comments came as Congress is considering addressing the joint employer issue via legislation.
Browning-Ferris is likely to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the issue if the appeals panel sides with the NLRB. The Trump administration has not said whether it would continue to defend the decision if it reaches the high court, but Pence’s comments suggest that’s unlikely.