DeLauro Applauds Department of Labor Decision to Withdraw Independent Contractor Rule

WASHINGTON – House Appropriations Committee Chair Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of Labor's announcement that, effective May 6, 2021, it will maintain workers' rights to the minimum wage and overtime compensation protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act:

"Countless workers are in jobs that do not pay them enough to live on, putting in long hours and working for an honest day's pay only to have their employers cheat them out of their hard-earned wages. After introducing legislation, holding a hearing, and hosting countless conversations on combatting wage theft, I applaud the Biden administration for the withdrawal of the ‘Independent Contractor Rule.'

"The Economic Policy Institute estimates as much as $50 billion is stolen from workers' paychecks every year. By creating this rule, the previous administration exacerbated the wage theft problem with poorly drafted end-runs around worker wage theft protections included in the Fair Labor Standards Act that would make it easier for employers to misclassify their workers as contractors. As people struggle to recover from the pandemic, this announcement is a huge victory for workers and their families."

DeLauro is the author and sponsor of the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act. As Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee Chair, DeLauro held a hearing on this issue: "Combating Wage Theft: The Critical Role of Wage and Hour Enforcement."