The election results were a significant victory for Trump and the GOP. While many anticipated that a Trump win would signal a shift toward business interests, the nomination of a Labor Secretary may indicate an unexpected pivot toward labor. In 2019, California’s AB5 legislation transformed the landscape of employee classification, resulting in a substantial reduction in the use of independent contractors in the state. This change increased labor costs for affected firms by over 25%. Now, several blue states are adopting similar legislation, and at the federal level, the PRO Act aims to implement similar measures nationwide.
Summary
•Trump nominated Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon for Cabinet Position – Secretary of Labor (Article Links Below)
·She was the Republican Co-Author of the PRO Act fashioned after CA AB5
·Very Pro-Labor and supported by the Teamster President Sean O’Brien. Could very well be reciprocation for the Teamsters mute position in the election, which was a positive for Trump
·Confirmation could be interesting and create strange bedfellows
·As you might know, the PRO Act is within a few votes of passage today and we would expect this to be in play in the next Congress
•States have really been the active battleground and expect this momentum to continue
·Fact is, there are twenty-seven states that have already adopted the California ABC Test. There are an additional eight states that enforce the A&B or the A&C portions of that Test.
·There is also momentum in other states to change from the current common law test to ABC as well so should expect the list of states utilizing ABC to expand
·Any company doing business across states lines will find it increasing difficult to navigate safely
•Articles on the topic
·https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/22/politics/lori-chavez-deremer-labor-secretary-trump/index.html
•This issue will probably hit the key Trucking vertical hard and will impact overall economy.
·Could Trump Labor Secretary Pick Endanger Trucking’s Owner-Operator Model? – Drivers – Trucking Info