WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia issued the following statement on the July 2020 Employment Situation Report:

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) today announced the signing of an agreement with Bank of America N.A. that implements systemic changes enhancing the employer’s working environment by taking defined steps to accommodate the reasonable break time for nursing mothers’ requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This agreement affords working mothers the support they need in the workplace when balancing professional and personal responsibilities.

In the week ending August 1, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 1,186,000, a decrease of 249,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 1,434,000 to 1,435,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,337,750, a decrease of 31,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 1,368,500 to 1,368,750.

NEW ORLEANS, LA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) in New Orleans, Louisiana, will host a webinar on Aug. 13, 2020, to help employers and employees understand provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and other requirements during the current coronavirus pandemic.

NEW ORLEANS, LA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) in New Orleans, Louisiana, will host a webinar on Aug. 6, 2020, to help area employers and employees understand the benefits and protections provided by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) in Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry and the Minnesota Department of Health are presenting a series of webinars on workplace provisions for supporting breastfeeding families during National Breastfeeding Month in August.

WEST COVINA, CA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) will offer a Korean-language webinar on Aug. 5, 2020, to help employers and employees in Southern California’s Korean communities understand the benefits and protections provided by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced today that it is offering online seminars in September to provide compliance assistance on the legal requirements to pay prevailing wages on federal and federally funded contracts for contracting agencies, contractors, unions, workers and other stakeholders. The events are part of an ongoing effort to raise awareness among and improve compliance by employers with federal and federally funded contracts.

ATLANTA, GA – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) will host an online town hall symposium on Aug. 4, 2020, for veterans and their spouses; federal contractors; state, local and federal agencies; and community-based organizations to highlight a locality-based model for recruiting and retaining veterans in Georgia.

PHOENIX, AZ – The U.S. Department of Labor secured a $3,000,000 consent judgment against Stratis Construction Inc. – a residential drywall company based in Phoenix, Arizona – for violating overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today the designation of a new chair and an appointment to the Department’s Administrative Review Board (ARB).

Judge James D. McGinley, who currently serves on the ARB, has been named its new chair, and Randel Keith Johnson has been appointed as a member of the Board for a two-year term.

WASHINGTON, DC – Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor took a range of actions to aid American workers and employers as our nation combats the coronavirus pandemic.

Reopening America’s Economy:

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced the award of nearly $102.5 million in grants to 47 states and Puerto Rico through the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) Program. This annual formula grant provides funding to states for Training and Other Activities, including training services, job search and relocation allowances, and employment and case management services to serve eligible workers affected by foreign trade.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia traveled to Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, where he visited The GIANT Company’s GIANT Direct eCommerce facility and store to meet with employees. The Secretary also joined a roundtable with local business and community leaders to discuss the safe reopening of the economy during the coronavirus pandemic. Secretary Scalia highlighted how fair and reciprocal trade through the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will bolster the economic recovery.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced it has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, acting through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Under this MOA, the Departments will provide access and share information about immigrant and nonimmigrant petition records and data contained within the Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s labor certification and labor condition application databases.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an opioid-crisis National Health Emergency Dislocated Worker Grant for $863,500 to the Washington State Employment Security Department. The grant will support disaster-relief jobs and provide employment services to eligible individuals in Washington communities affected by the health and economic effects of widespread opioid use, addiction and overdose.

MCLEAN, VA – The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia has approved a default judgment that requires Mahan Consulting Group LLC and its president and owner Shaun Marzett to restore $21,880 to the 401(k), health and welfare benefit plans of the now defunct consulting company in McLean, Virginia.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) today announced its intent to award up to $8 million in grant funding for up to two technical assistance projects to improve downstream tracing of goods made by child labor or forced labor. The grant will support the recipient’s development of tested supply-chain methodologies, piloted tools for supply-chain tracing, and disseminating supply-chain tracing tools and methodologies to stakeholders.

NEW YORK, NY – An administrative law judge with the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission has upheld citations and penalties from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) against Timberline Hardwood Floors LLC, a custom hardwood-flooring manufacturer that falsely claimed to have corrected previously cited hazards. The judge’s decision also orders the company to pay $166,265 in penalties for all violations.

In the week ending July 25, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 1,434,000, an increase of 12,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 6,000 from 1,416,000 to 1,422,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,368,500, an increase of 6,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,750 from 1,360,250 to 1,362,000.