OnlineWSJ.com
DECEMBER 7, 2009, 12:29 P.M. ET
By DARRELL A. HUGHES
WASHINGTON -- The Labor Department unveiled Monday its 2010 legislative agenda, which includes regulations that would require employers to disclose agreements and arrangements made with labor consultants.
"When workers or union members have more information about what arrangements have been made by their employer to persuade them whether or not to join a union, this information helps them make a more informed choice regarding their collective bargaining rights and acts to level the labor-management relations playing field," the department said in its online regulatory agenda.
The Labor Department's agenda also includes plans to revise employer record keeping requirements. The department said current rules don't require employers to share -- on every payday -- the number of hours worked, the amount of pay that's been computed and whether proper wage and overtime has been included in hours worked. "This is an issue of transparency," Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said in a recorded video online.
Ms. Solis said the department is proposing 90 rules in its regulatory agenda for the year ahead.
The Labor Secretary made no mention of a potential new or expanded jobs creation program to the combat ailing jobs market that has left about 8 million people unemployed.
The White House and leaders in Congress are debating whether to use any of the slated $200 billion remaining Troubled Asset Relief Program funds to create a jobs bill. Democrats have begun to hash out how to pay for a mix of unemployment benefits, state aid, tax credits and other incentives they hope will turn around the country's surging unemployment rate.
Nonetheless, Ms. Solis said the department will pursue "increase employment opportunities for protected veterans with federal contractors and subcontractors," along with proposing a rule that addresses affirmative action requirements.
Full Story: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126020616287780209.html
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