Dr. David Weil, the former Obama administration Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division administrator, is vying for his old job yet again. Unfortunately, his selection would imperil small-business creation and freelancing in the U.S.
The Wage and Hour Division administrator is tasked with enforcing federal minimum-wage, overtime, and family-leave laws under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
After failing to confirm him last summer, the White House renominated Weil on January 4 — a move that has drawn the ire of Republican lawmakers and business leaders. Such opposition today turns on his left-wing positions, his lack of private-sector experience, and his anti-business record between 2014 and 2017. Yet it’s also worth noting that moderate Democratic senator Joe Manchin (W.Va.) has reservations about him, too.
Among the scores of bad policies that Weil would try to enact, perhaps the worst are the rule changes that would reclassify independent contractors as employees.