Information contained in this publication is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion, nor is it a substitute for the professional judgment of an attorney.
The Policy Week in Review, prepared by Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute (WPI), sets forth WPI’s updates on federal, state, and local matters, as well as Littler’s published in-depth analyses of the prior week.
Congressional and Administrative News
Senator Josh Hawley’s (R-MO) Labor Reform Framework Attracts Bipartisan Support
Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Bernie Moreno (R-OH) are reportedly signing on as cosponsors to Senator Hawley’s draft legislative framework to reform labor law. Senator Hawley’s framework, which resembles aspects of the PRO Act, contains union top priorities including: banning captive audience meetings, prohibiting “unsafe” warehouse speed quotas; requiring quickie elections within 20 business days; forcing contract negotiations within 10 days following an election; and creating civil penalties, increased damages, and employees’ right to seek remedies in court if the NLRB fails to bring suit. At this time, actual legislation has not been introduced. Senator Hawley, however, continues to socialize the framework with key constituencies as evidenced by his meeting earlier this week with the United Automobile Workers’ president, Shawn Fain, to discuss the legislative draft.
Labor Secretary Nominee Chevez-DeRemer Committee Hearing Scheduled for February 12
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday, February 12 at 10:00 a.m., on the nomination of former Representative Lori M. Chavez-DeRemer to serve as secretary of labor. You can watch the hearing here.
President Trump Appoints Acting General Counsels at NLRB and EEOC
Following the string of recent dismissals, President Trump named Andrew Rogers as the acting general counsel of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and William Cowen as the acting general counsel at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Rogers served as chief counsel to EEOC Commissioner Andrea Lucas, who was recently appointed as acting EEOC chair. Cowen served as the Board’s regional director in the Los Angeles office and was a previous Board member. Both general counsel positions require Senate confirmation, which means President Trump must officially name nominees for these positions.
Senate Confirms Pam Bondi as U.S. Attorney General
On Tuesday, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general, Pam Bondi, former Florida attorney general, was confirmed by the Senate. The vote was 54-46, with Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman as the sole Democrat voting to confirm her.
Weekly Labor and Employment News
Executive Order Tracker (Updated as of February 6, 2025)
Littler's Executive Order Tracker is your go-to resource for staying updated on all executive orders and actions issued by the Trump administration. We are tracking every order, analyzing its impact, and providing summaries to help you understand the changes and the implications to your business. Only those orders that impact compliance with labor and employment directives are identified with a topic. In the first 100 days, the Trump administration is also rescinding executive orders issued by previous administrations and those are available here.
Executive Order Targets Prohibitions Against Sexual Orientation and Gender Expression Discrimination
On his first day in office, President Trump issued an executive order titled, “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.” The order defines “sex” as each “individual’s immutable biological classification as either male or female,” and calls for eradicating “gender ideology,” which, according to the order, “includes the idea that there is a vast spectrum of genders that are disconnected from one’s sex.”
UPDATE: On January 31, 2025, the EEOC advised that at the present time all charges alleging discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity will be sent to national headquarters for review to ensure that they “comply with applicable executive orders to the fullest extent possible.” The agency also indicated that with respect to such charges it will issue a notice of right to sue if asked to by a charging party “as statutorily required.” Finally, the EEOC indicated that the acting chair intends to propose rescission or revision of anti-harassment and other guidance relating to gender identity and sexual orientation that is in conflict with these orders.
Recent Executive Orders and Dear Colleague Letter Affecting Educational Institutions
In the two weeks since President Trump took office, he has issued numerous orders, many of which affect educational institutions. This ASAP summarizes the most recent executive orders and directives affecting our education clients.
On January 16, 2025, just days before transferring power to the new administration, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice issued updated Antitrust Guidelines for Business Activities Affecting Workers aimed at addressing business practices that impact workers. The guidelines reflect the former administration’s commitment to protecting labor markets from what it perceived as anticompetitive conduct. The timing of their release and the Trump administration’s stance, however, suggest that enforcement may not be as aggressive under the Trump administration as it would have been under the Biden administration.
On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order establishing the Department of Government Efficiency under Elon Musk. Just days later, on February 3, DOGE closed the Washington headquarters of the U.S. Agency for International Development and moved to fold USAID into the State Department under Secretary of State Marco Rubio. On February 3, according to CNN, the president called USAID’s leaders “a bunch of radical lunatics” and Musk called the Agency “beyond repair”—not “an apple with a worm in it, [but] a ball of worms.”
