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Today, the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections held a hearing to examine the Obama administration's regulatory and enforcement agenda under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Republican committee members expressed concerns about recent actions that take a far more punitive approach to enforcement, fostering greater uncertainty among employers.

House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) described one particularly aggressive enforcement effort initiated by the Labor Department: a comprehensive investigation into the home builders industry. Launched without evidence of wrongdoing, the investigation requires targeted employers to turn over extensive documents related to virtually every facet of their business.

Asked by Chairman Kline whether the administration considered the impact of this unwarranted investigation on employers and jobs, Deputy Administrator Nancy Leppink of the Wage and Hour Division couldn't provide a straight answer.


Watch the exchange below:
           
                          

 

Unemployment in the nation's construction industry currently stands at 13.3 percent. It is difficult to understand how a costly and unwarranted investigation into the nation's home builders will help these unemployed Americans get back to work.

For more information on today's hearing, click here.

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