Policy Week in Review – April 25, 2025

Chair Cassidy (R-LA) Releases White Paper on Providing Benefits to Independent Workers

On Wednesday, U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chair Bill Cassidy (R-LA) released a white paper highlighting the importance of independent work and detailing proposals to provide portable benefits to independent contractors. The paper acknowledges the value of independent work as it provides approximately 27 million Americans the opportunity to supplement income from traditional jobs and the ability to engage in the workforce given the great flexibility it provides, especially for those with dependent care obligations.  Addressing the legal uncertainties of various employment status tests under current law, Dr. Cassidy states that “Workers and firms would benefit from a single statutorily-defined test determining employment status.”  Additionally, he calls on Congress to “consider decoupling the provisions of benefits from the fear of potentially ruinous misclassification lawsuits by establishing a safe harbor for providing benefits in federal law” and “further evaluate whether affirming that providing benefits to independent workers does not trigger employment status under federal law would help spur state and private sector innovation that supports workers.”  As an example, he points to the recently enacted safe harbor laws in Tennessee and Utah that allow employers to provide benefits to independent contractors.    

H-2B Visa Cap Reached for Early Second Half of FY25

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it has reached enough petitions to reach the H-2B visa cap for returning seasonal workers for the early second half of FY25.  Pursuant to the H-2B supplemental cap temporary final rule, 19,000 additional visas were allowed for FY25 with start dates from April 1 – May 14, 2025.  

Trump Administration Moves to Eliminate Federal Government’s Use of Disparate Impact Theory Liability 

On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order instructing that federal agencies cease using the disparate impact theory of liability under federal civil rights laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (addressing employment discrimination) and Title VI (addressing discrimination in education).  The order states specifically, “It is the policy of the United States to eliminate the use of disparate-impact liability in all contexts to the maximum degree possible to avoid violating the Constitution, Federal civil rights laws, and basic American ideals,” and directs that all federal agencies shall “deprioritize” enforcement of statutes and regulations relying on disparate impact theory. The order further directs the attorney general to take appropriate action to repeal or amend Title VI regulations to the extent they contemplate disparate impact liability and instructs the chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), within 45 days, to review all pending investigations and civil lawsuits that rely on a theory of disparate impact liability and “take appropriate action” consistent with the policy of the executive order.  For additional Littler analysis, read here.

EEOC Requests OMB Approval for 2024 EEO-1 Reporting Cycle and Updates to Form 462

Each year companies across the United States await the EEOC portal opening date so that they can manage and plan their resources to meet the deadline to file their EEO-1 form—a report required by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in which an employer must break out its workforce by race, ethnicity, gender, and position. Well, the wait is over—after months of silence on the subject, the EEOC included the 2024 filing period in the recently submitted documents to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. The portal is scheduled to open on May 20, 2025, and companies will have until June 24, 2025, to submit their reports. For additional Littler analysis, read here.