Skip to main content
Affordable Employee Training Exclusively for NJBIA Members LEARN MORE

Employment law violations will be more expensive thanks to an across-the-board increase in penalties by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The penalties will increase an average of 2 percent, according to the news website HR Dive.

Maximum penalty increases for violating minimum-wage and overtime rules rose from $1,925 to $1,964; child labor laws from $12,278 to $12,529; and anti-retaliation and discrimination laws under visa programs from $20,111 to $20,521.

What direction the agency is headed, however, isn’t clear.

“DOL is still waiting for the administration to fill a number of positions, but it’s still enforcing federal labor laws,” writes Valerie Bolden-Barrett. “Its focus, however, is expected to shift from penalization to prevention, and that move has been seen in its settlement agreement announcements, which have taken a softer tone since President Donald Trump’s inauguration.”

Read more