President’s Budget for Labor and Employment Agencies

The president’s FY 2014 budget contains information on the administration’s enforcement and employment initiatives. The budget is ultimately subject to congressional approval – where it faces considerable opposition – but shows the administration’s priorities and illustrates how employers can prepare for greater enforcement and regulatory activity in the coming years. Budget levels and priorities for key department and agencies include: Department of Labor: The Department of Labor’s (DOL) budget would receive $12.1 billion in discretionary funding, which is slightly higher than the year prior. The proposed budget signals the administration’s intentions to bolster the enforcement of critical wage and hour, whistleblower, and worker safety laws. Wage and Hour Division: The budget provides $243 million for the Wage and Hour Division for increased enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act. It also provides $5.8 million for new enforcement and management systems to capture and analyze trends in labor law violations and target investigations. A significant part of the budget would be for enforcement of misclassification of workers as independent contractors. Occupational Safety and Health Administration: The budget provides $571 million for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an increase from last year. An additional $5.9 million would be provided to bolster OSHA’s enforcement of the 21 whistleblower laws that protect workers and others who are retaliated against for reporting unsafe and unscrupulous practices. Funding for the Susan Harwood training grant program remains unchanged. Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs: The budget provides $108 million to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), also an increase from last year. The priorities for OFCCP include narrowing pay disparity and ensuring that contractors recruit, hire and retain veterans and individuals with disabilities. National Labor Relations Board: The budget provides $285 million for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an increase from last year. The budget also provides $114 million to support, expand, and enhance the E-Verify system to build additional system capacity, enhance fraud-prevention and detection capabilities, and improve individuals’ ability to ensure their employment eligibility records are accurate. For more information, please contact Jim Young at (202) 547-0133 or youngj@agc.org.