April 22, 2026
U.S. DOL Publishes Proposed Joint Employer Rule
On April 22, 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to revise its analysis for assessing joint employer status under three federal wage and hour laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
The proposed rule continues to use vertical and horizontal analyses. Vertical analyses are applied when separate employers are sufficiently associated with respect to the employment of the same employee, such as with a contractor or vendor.
Horizontal analyses include at least a four (4) factor test. Some of the factors are similar to those used to determine independent contractor status. Interestingly and ICYMI, the DOL just published a proposed rule about IC status, too!
The DOL announced the purpose of the revisions it to (1) reduce compliance and litigation costs; (2) improve the DOL’s ability to enforce the law; (3) help workers to better understand their rights and available remedies; as well as (4) promote greater uniformity in the analysis applied by courts; (5) and more.
For now, the proposed rule does seem to streamline the analysis by expressly excluding certain factors including some common market practices such as (1) having an agreement related to their respective health, safety, or legal compliance, including anti-harassment policies; (2) providing a sample employee handbook or other forms to another employer; (3) offering an association health plan or association retirement plan to another employer; (4) and more.
What now? The DOL is accepting comments until June 22nd. Stay tuned and watch “Upcoming Events” as FiveL Company will likely host another FREE webcast on this proposed rule.
