A rule the U.S. Department of Labor proposed Thursday would largely return to a prior test for whether a worker is an independent contractor or employee, but it could have even less sway in federal courts than its previous iteration did, attorneys said.
Some federal courts' recent deviation from the long-settled standard for analyzing employer liability in third-party harassment cases has prompted the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to try and course-correct, but guidance from the nation's highest court may ultimately be necessary, experts said.
The National Labor Relations Board formally republished a 2020 rule on Thursday narrowing the circumstances in which it tags employers with liability to another firm's employees, in what it called a "ministerial" step to clarify its consistent policy.