The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division today announced a proposed rule to address joint employer status under three federal wage and hour laws—the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA). This rulemaking aims to provide greater clarity and consistency in how joint employer status is determined under these laws, which would benefit workers, businesses, courts, and the department’s enforcement personnel.
In particular, the analysis detailed in the proposed rule would:
- Set forth distinct standards for determining joint employer status in “vertical” and “horizontal” business relationships.
- Advise that horizontal joint employment exists when separate employers are sufficiently associated with respect to the employment of the same employee, but that business relationships which have little to do with the employment of specific employees are alone insufficient to establish joint employment.
- Adopt a four-factor analysis for use in every case of potential vertical joint employment.
- Advise that “reserved control” may be considered but is less indicative of vertical joint employment than exercised control.
- Exclude consideration of certain factors that are relevant only in assessing whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor.
- Exclude the relevance of certain general business models and business practices when determining joint employment.
- Provide examples illustrating how the proposed analysis would apply in certain factual circumstances.
Additional information about the substance of the proposed rule is available on our website.
Your feedback matters! Workers, employers, unions, and associations – your voice can shape the new rule. The department encourages all interested parties to submit comments on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which has a 60-day comment period that closes at 11:59 p.m. ET on June 22, 2026.
Workers and employers can call the Wage and Hour Division with questions and requests for compliance assistance at its toll-free helpline, 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). The agency’s PAID program offers employers an opportunity to self-report and resolve potential minimum wage and overtime violations under the FLSA, as well as certain potential violations under the FMLA.
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