State and Federal Labor Guidance
Free state and federal labor-agency opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices, with plain-English summaries, current status, and the official source on every page.
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Orders of wages, penalties, fines, and consequences for non-compliance
This Division notice details the penalties an employer owes an employee and fines it owes the state for unpaid wages, how the amounts scale with whether the violation was "willful" (with detailed…
Worker Classification: Who Is and Isn't an "Employee" Protected by Labor Standards Laws?
This Division notice explains how Colorado decides whether a worker is a protected "employee" or an independent contractor under the Colorado Wage Act's definition, regardless of how a business…
Individual Liability under the Colorado Wage Act and Healthy Families and Workplaces Act
This Division notice explains when an individual person, not just the employer business, can be personally liable for unpaid wages under the Colorado Wage Act and Healthy Families and Workplaces…
Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund initial grant round
ETA announced an initial round of about $30 million in Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund grants, with awards up to $8 million and at least $5 million designated for shipbuilding training. The…
The wage claim investigation process
This Division notice walks through the mechanics of a wage-claim investigation step by step: who may file (including misclassified independent contractors and workers regardless of immigration…
Medical evaluations for workers required to wear respirators
Physicians asked whether OSHA’s respirator medical evaluation must assess a worker’s fitness for other job tasks and whether employers must supply broader job descriptions. OSHA said the required…
Impact noise above 140 decibels under OSHA’s noise standard
A firing-range employer asked how OSHA treats impulse noise above 140 dB. OSHA said the standard’s “should not exceed” wording makes 140 dB neither an action level nor a permissible exposure limit…
Overlapping 24-hour workdays and daily overtime, with worked examples
An attorney asked the Nevada Labor Commissioner to clarify an earlier opinion (AO-2024-01) on how a "workday" -- a rolling 24-consecutive-hour period starting when an employee begins a shift -- can…
Red-light therapy wraps and OSHA injury recordkeeping
A requester asked whether LED red-light therapy wraps count as first aid under OSHA’s injury recordkeeping rules. OSHA said they do not: the first-aid list is comprehensive, and this light treatment…
Home care enforcement pending rulemaking
WHD directed its investigators to suspend enforcement of the 2013 domestic-service rule while it reconsiders that rule. During this period, it will not pursue certain home care agencies claiming…
Fiscal year 2026 state unemployment insurance quality service plans
ETA tells state unemployment agencies how to prepare their fiscal year 2026 State Quality Service Plans. It sets priorities for timely and accurate benefits, preventing improper payments and fraud,…
Handling returned unemployment payments and reporting overpayments
ETA tells state unemployment agencies how to handle benefit payments returned by banks, including cases with no identifying claim information. A bank's return alone does not prove fraud or…
FY 2025 Trade Adjustment Assistance funding requests
ETA tells state workforce agencies how to request FY 2025 Trade Adjustment Assistance Training and Other Activities funds. It required Form ETA-9117 with a funding justification and Form SF-424…
Association disability and long-term care plans under ERISA Unknown
An association asked whether its disability and long-term care arrangements were ERISA employee welfare benefit plans. EBSA concluded that the described plans were not established or maintained by…
Rescission of the 2023 Citi racial equity program opinion Unknown
EBSA told Citi that its 2023 advisory opinion about the company’s racial equity asset manager program no longer reflected the Department’s views and was rescinded. The 2025 letter states EBSA’s…
Deductions from, and Credits towards, Employee Pay
This Division notice explains that Colorado employers may deduct from wages only in five lawful categories (legally required deductions, written-agreement deductions primarily benefiting the…
Agricultural Employee Rest Periods, Meal Periods, and Service Provider Access
This Division notice details Colorado agricultural workers' rest and meal period rights (paid 10-15 minute rest breaks every 4 hours, 30-minute meal breaks in shifts over 5 hours), additional paid…
Supplemental wage information for WIOA performance reports, Change 1
ETA and the Education Department update guidance on using supplemental wage information for WIOA performance accountability. The change aligns reporting with the rule defining the…
Work authorization verification for ETA grant programs, Change 2 Rescinded
This 2025 letter directed recipients of listed ETA workforce grants to review work authorization verification policies and documentation. It applied to WIOA, Employment Service, YouthBuild,…
Validation of jointly required WIOA performance data, Change 1
ETA and the Education Department give states updated procedures for checking the accuracy and reliability of jointly required WIOA performance data. The change aligns the employer-effectiveness…
Voter registration costs in the American Job Center network, Change 2
ETA tells states, local areas, and grantees that ETA federal awards cannot fund or reimburse voter registration activities conducted within the American Job Center network. It directs recipients to…
WIOA annual statewide performance report narratives, Change 1
ETA tells WIOA state grantees how to prepare and submit the annual statewide performance report narrative for Titles I and III. The report is generally due December 1 after the program year, and the…
Voluntary payroll deductions for employee food purchases, logged rather than individually signed
An employer offering discounted employee meals asked the Nevada Labor Commissioner whether its practice -- employees sign a shared logbook per purchase, and the total shows as one lump deduction…
Program Year 2025 SCSEP state and territory allotments
ETA gives state and territorial Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees their program year 2025 allotments, authorized positions, and grant application instructions. It asked them to…
Liquidated damages in FLSA administrative settlements
WHD instructed staff to stop seeking or supervising liquidated damages in pre-litigation FLSA matters, limiting supervised payments to unpaid minimum wages and overtime. It rescinded FAB 2021-2…
When daily overtime hours exceed weekly overtime hours (or vice versa), which controls
A law firm asked the Nevada Labor Commissioner how to calculate overtime for an employee entitled to daily overtime (working more than 8 hours in a workday) who also crosses 40 hours in the same…
H-2A farmworker rule enforcement suspension
WHD instructed its investigators to stop enforcing the 2024 H-2A Farmworker Protection Rule amid court injunctions and regulatory review. For compliance reviews it directs them to apply the rules in…
Tread depth on newly built steep stairs
A requester asked whether a stair built after January 17, 2017 could meet OSHA’s minimum tread-depth rule with an eight-inch run plus a projecting nosing. OSHA said no; the required 9.5-inch tread…
Foreign labor certification grants for FY 2025–2027
ETA gives state workforce agencies grant planning guidance for foreign labor certification activities through FY 2027 and announces FY 2025 allotments. It requires a three-year strategic grant plan…
Audiometric testing for a worker with a cochlear implant
An employer asked whether a worker with a cochlear implant should wear it during audiometric testing under OSHA’s noise standard. OSHA said no and explained that the standard has no exception for…
Fiscal year 2025 RESEA grant allotments and operating guidance
ETA explains fiscal year 2025 grants for state Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment programs, which connect unemployment claimants with reemployment help and check benefit eligibility.…
FY 2025 WOTC remaining allotments and backlog awards, Change 2
ETA gives state workforce agencies the remaining FY 2025 funds to administer the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. It also identifies 29 states selected for additional awards to reduce certification…
Program Year 2025 National Farmworker Jobs Program funds
ETA tells National Farmworker Jobs Program career training and housing grantees how to receive program year 2025 allotments. It also explains how eligible grantees could seek additional youth…
Program Year 2025 WIOA Indian and Native American grants
ETA gives WIOA Section 166 Indian and Native American grantees their program year 2025 Comprehensive Services and Supplemental Youth Services allotments. It explains the Grants.gov documents and a…
Program Year 2025 WIOA and Employment Service allotments
ETA gives states and outlying areas program year 2025 allotments for WIOA Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth programs, the Wagner-Peyser Employment Service, and Workforce Information Grants. It…
Minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly benefit amounts, July–September 2025
ETA gives state workforce agencies the minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared from July 1 through September 30, 2025. States use half their average…
Shift differential pay on prevailing-wage public works projects
An attorney asked whether the Labor Commissioner fully adopts a union collective bargaining agreement's shift-differential terms for the Electrician Wireman craft on public works projects, whether…
Valve controls under benzene and butadiene standards
A chemical plant asked what kinds of valves count as engineering controls for benzene and 1,3-butadiene exposure. OSHA said both specialized sealed valves and conventional valves can be engineering…
Wage and hour compliance notice for shore-based fish processors
Responding to recurring complaints and enforcement activity in the shore-based fish processing industry, Alaska's Wage and Hour office sent this industry-wide letter explaining how the Alaska Wage…
Flexible work-hour ('flex') plans industry notice
Alaska's Wage and Hour office issued this industry notice explaining "flex plans" — a voluntary alternative work schedule (minimum four workdays and 33 hours, capped at 10 hours/day and 40…
Rescission of TEGL 08-21 on voting access at job centers
ETA rescinds TEGL 08-21, its earlier guidance about providing voting access through the American Job Center network. The letter asks workforce agencies and job center programs to distribute the…
Independent contractor status of virtual marketplace providers
A virtual marketplace company asked whether providers who find customers through its platform are its employees under the FLSA. WHD concluded that, on the detailed facts provided, they are…
Independent-contractor enforcement under the FLSA
WHD directed investigators to stop applying the 2024 FLSA independent-contractor rule and instead use its July 2008 Fact Sheet #13, informed by Opinion Letter FLSA2019-6, for certain unpaid matters.…
Post-completion plant establishment work probably exempt on these facts
A landscaping subcontractor asked whether Nevada prevailing wage applies to one-year "plant establishment work" (watering, weeding, and replacing dead plants) performed after a public works project…
Software-generated OSHA injury recordkeeping forms
A software vendor asked whether employers may use its generated documents instead of OSHA Forms 300 and 300A. OSHA said equivalent forms may be used if they meet the regulatory content and format…
In-person evaluation of powered industrial truck operators
A requester asked whether a qualified trainer can evaluate a powered industrial truck operator through a live video stream. OSHA said required direct supervision means the trainer or evaluator must…
Rescission of TEGL 10-23 on administrative barriers
ETA rescinds TEGL 10-23, which had discussed reducing administrative barriers for customers of ETA grant programs. It asks recipients to distribute the rescission to appropriate staff and says more…
Minimum wage does not apply to work assignments in rehabilitation programs
DLS was asked whether work performed by people participating in rehabilitation programs at charitable, educational, or religious institutions is subject to the state minimum wage. DLS concluded it…
Minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly benefit amounts, April–June 2025
ETA gives state workforce agencies the minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared from April 1 through June 30, 2025. States use half their average weekly…
FY 2025 WOTC incremental allotments, Change 1
ETA gives state workforce agencies additional FY 2025 Work Opportunity Tax Credit administration funds provided by a continuing resolution. It lists state allotments and asks grantees to submit…
Truck drivers exempt from Apprenticeship Utilization Act reporting
Responding to inquiries from the trucking industry, the Labor Commissioner addressed whether Senate Bill 82's Apprenticeship Utilization Act (AUA) annual reporting requirement -- which requires…
COVID-19 healthcare recordkeeping enforcement stay Superseded
OSHA told inspectors in February 2025 not to cite healthcare employers for specified COVID-19 log and reporting requirements under 29 CFR 1910.502 while continuing to enforce Part 1904. OSHA later…
National Farmworker Jobs Program eligibility, Change 2
ETA updates National Farmworker Jobs Program eligibility guidance to account for farmworkers’ work patterns and irregular income. It clarifies how grantees determine primary farmwork employment,…
Salary and bonus limit on ETA grant funds
ETA explains how an appropriations limit applies when recipients or subrecipients use ETA grant funds to pay an individual’s salary or bonus. It says the covered pay rate generally cannot exceed…
End of new pandemic overpayment blanket-waiver scenario requests
ETA stops accepting new state applications for additional blanket-waiver scenarios for recovery of overpayments in expired pandemic unemployment programs. States may continue using the seven…
State paid family leave and substitution of employer paid leave
An employer asked whether FMLA rules for substituting accrued paid leave apply while an employee receives state paid family or medical leave. WHD said qualifying leave must be designated as FMLA…
Restaurant managers and shift leads in a tip pool
A restaurant asked whether managers may join a tip pool when working a service shift, and whether a shift lead may join when the most senior employee present. WHD said managers who meet the…
Deadline and participation instructions for national UI identity verification Superseded
ETA originally set December 31, 2025 as the deadline for states to deploy national identity verification services and retain federal coverage of transaction costs. It also described policy review,…
The Collective Bargaining by County Employees Act ("COBCA")
This Division notice explains the Collective Bargaining by County Employees Act (COBCA), effective July 1, 2023, which gives most Colorado county employees (including county sheriff employees) the…
Retention of records for pandemic unemployment programs
ETA directs state unemployment agencies to keep records for the listed pandemic benefit programs until the Department gives further notice. It replaces earlier three-year retention instructions for…
How this guidance is useful
- See how the agency reads the law: An opinion letter shows how a state labor agency actually applied wage-and-hour law to a real employer's or worker's situation.
- Check the status before relying: Every page shows whether the document is still active or has been superseded, rescinded, or withdrawn, and when that status was last verified.
- Guidance, not law: These documents explain the agency's position but bind no court, and the agency can change its view. The official document linked on every page is the authoritative source.
- Research across states: Compare how different states treat the same question, from overtime and travel time to tips and independent-contractor status.
Browse guidance by state
This library covers 8 states plus federal guidance so far. Every document is checked against the agency's official source before it is published, so states are added as their labor departments' guidance is verified, not all at once. If your state is not listed yet, its labor department's own site is the place to check.