In late August, U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta announced the U.S. Department of Labor's new Office of Compliance Initiatives (OCI). The cross-agency effort includes increased enforcement of compliance, as well as better efforts at compliance assistance outreach. Part of this initiative is the launch of worker.gov and employer.gov, two websites with resources to assess compliance with the law.

Established within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, OCI will provide leadership and support to the Department's enforcement agencies, advancing the expansion and development of innovative approaches to compliance assistance and enforcement. OCI's work will include:

• Facilitating and encouraging a culture that promotes compliance assistance within the Department
• Providing employers and workers with access to high-quality, up-to-date information about their obligations and rights under federal labor laws and regulations
• Assisting enforcement agencies in developing new strategies to use data for more impactful compliance and enforcement strategies
• Enhancing outreach to stakeholders for the Department's enforcement agencies

Worker.gov provides a centralized base of information focused on federal worker protections. Employer.gov provides job creators easy-to-understand information about their responsibilities under federal laws and regulations. The Department expects more effective compliance assistance will help the Department target enforcement resources on repeat and willful violators to level the playing field for America's job creators who abide by the law.

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Flower trials "best of" winners announced
Skills-based learning gives kids another chance
Show what you know to earn respect
Revised proposed rule on overtime expected in October