DENVER, CO – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has signed a two-year alliance with the Colorado On-Site Health & Safety Consultation Program, the Brewers Association, the Master Brewers Association of the Americas, and the Colorado Brewers Guild, to promote employee safety in Colorado's brewing industry.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT – The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) is conducting a statewide wage survey in Utah to help establish prevailing wage rates as required under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA). WHD urges all highway construction employers in Utah to participate.

MALVERN, PA – The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking current or former employees of American Future Systems - doing business as Progressive Business Publications - who may be owed a portion of $1,916,000 in back wages and liquidated damages recovered by the Department's Wage and Hour Division (WHD). American Future Systems is the parent company of Progressive Business Publications, a Malvern, Pennsylvania, direct-marketing company that publishes subscription-driven, business-to-business newsletters and other publications.

WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor has launched a new resource that helps employers better understand mental health issues, and provides guidance on how to cultivate a work environment that supports employees with related conditions.

SYRACUSE, NY – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Remington Arms Company LLC – based in Madison, North Carolina – for 27 violations of workplace safety and health standards after an employee's fingertip was amputated while working on a broaching machine at its Ilion, New York, manufacturing plant. The arms manufacturer faces $210,132 in penalties.

JACKSONVILLE, FL – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Florida Roofing Experts Inc. for exposing employees to fall hazards at a Jacksonville, Florida, worksite. The company faces the maximum penalty allowed of $132,598.

DENVER, CO - The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) will present an educational forum about developments in its policies and regulations, and its Payroll Audit Independent Determination Program (PAID), in Denver, Colorado, on April 3, 2019.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that it has issued three new opinion letters that address compliance issues related to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). An opinion letter is an official, written opinion by the Department's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) on how a particular law applies in specific circumstances presented by the individual person or entity that requested the letter.

The opinion letters issued today are:

WARREN, OH – To raise awareness about the hazards in the trenching and excavation industry, including potentially deadly trench collapses, U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) representatives will participate in Trenching Safety Day on April 3, 2019, in Warren, Ohio.

CHICAGO, IL – To raise awareness about the hazards in the trenching and excavation industry, including potentially deadly trench collapses, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is joining with industry leaders, union leaders, and safety professionals for three Trench Safety Conferences, April 9-11, 2019, in the Chicago area.

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a new pilot program for discretionary suspensions and debarments to ensure accountability and protect the federal government from doing business with those who engage in inappropriate or illegal conduct.

Discretionary suspensions and debarments make individuals or organizations ineligible for federal contracting and transactions with the federal government typically for up to 12 months for a suspension and up to three years for a debarment.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an opioid-crisis Dislocated Worker Grant (DWG) to the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training for up to $3,988,971, with $1,329,657 released initially. This grant will provide disaster relief jobs and employment services to eligible individuals in Rhode Island impacted by the health and economic effects of widespread opioid use, addiction, and overdose.

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta today was joined by Americans from around the nation to discuss pathways for those exiting the justice system to reenter the workforce.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the U.S. Department of Labor announced a proposed rule to revise and clarify the responsibilities of employers and joint employers to employees in joint employer arrangements. The Department has not meaningfully revised its joint employer regulation since 1958.

NEW YORK, NY – Tishman Interiors Corp. - the prime contractor for a renovation project at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York - has paid $420,335 in back wages to resolve violations of federal wage laws following a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) announced today the selection of four organizations to pilot its Apprenticeship Inclusion Models' (AIM) initiative. The purpose of the AIM initiative is to expand pathways for youth and adults with disabilities into high-demand, well-paying careers by developing and testing new recruitment and retention strategies with employers, unions, and apprenticeship programs.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor reminds the nation's job creators they have until April 30, 2019, to submit an application for an Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans (HIRE Vets) Medallion Award.

The award recognizes employers ranging from small businesses, non-profit organizations, and large businesses for their leadership in recruiting, employing, and retaining America's veterans.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a proposed rule to clarify and update the regulations governing regular rate requirements for the first time in more than 50 years.

Regular rate requirements define what forms of payment employers include and exclude in the "time and one-half" calculation when determining workers' overtime rates.

In the week ending March 23, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 211,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 5,000 from 221,000 to 216,000. The 4-week moving average was 217,250, a decrease of 3,250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised down by 4,500 from 225,000 to 220,500. 

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, the U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) announced the availability of approximately $13.5 million in Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program (HVRP) grants.