On August 28, 2018, U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta announced the new Office of Compliance Initiatives (OCI) to expand, strengthen and innovate the U.S. Department of Labor's compliance assistance outreach.
Coordinated by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, OCI promotes greater understanding of federal labor laws and regulations, allowing job creators to prevent violations and protect Americans' wages, workplace safety and health, retirement security, and other rights and benefits. As part of its work, OCI will work with the enforcement agencies to refine their metrics to ensure the efficacy of the Department's compliance assistance activities.
What We Do
- Partner with agencies on innovative compliance assistance as a complement to enforcement
- Help employers understand and comply with the laws and regulations that agencies administer
- Help prevent employment law violations, freeing up agencies to focus scarce resources on willful and repeat offenders
Areas of Focus
1. Outreach
- Engage stakeholders and partners
- Expand upon elaws Advisors, Employer.gov, and Worker.gov
2. Innovation
- Develop social media and online compliance assistance tools
- Identify innovative best practices to link with enforcement strategies
3. Culture
- Share best practices and innovations with agency and field staff
- Measure compliance-assistance milestones with metrics
4. Analysis
- Enhance and expand upon data quality, sharing, and usage
- Develop behavioral economic resources to facilitate compliance
Compliance Assistance Resources
- Worker.gov – Learn about federal labor laws that protect you at work
- Employer.gov – Get answers to common questions about federal labor laws
- elaws – Employment laws assistance for workers and small businesses
- Employment Law Guide
- Webinars
- Compliance Assistance Guide – How the U.S. Department of Labor can help you
News Updates
- 9/14/2020 – US DOL Announces Summit for Employers On Compliance Assistance and Recognition Award Programs
- 4/30/2020 – US DOL Invites the Public to Participate in National Online Dialogue on Opening America’s Workplaces Again
- 3/25/2020 – US DOL invites stakeholders to a national online dialogue on paid family and medical leave and paid sick leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act
- 3/2/2020 – US DOL announces plans to assist federal contractors’ compliance
- 2/26/2020 – US DOL launches interactive learning management system for federal contractors
- 12/2/2019 – Tips for Protecting Workers’ Safety and Pay This Holiday Season
- 11/25/2019 – 7 Compliance Assistance Sites Small Business Owners Should Bookmark
- 11/7/2019 – Honoring Our Veterans and Those Who Hire Them
- 9/3/2019 – US DOL announces nationwide compliance assistance outreach effort
- 8/15/2019 – US DOL invites stakeholders to an online dialogue on supporting nursing mothers in the workplace
- 8/8/2019 – New US DOL guidance helps employers manage pension obligations for uniformed service members returning to work
- 7/26/2019 – US DOL-funded online toolkit helps employers ensure disability-inclusive workplaces
- 6/27/2019 – US DOL Announces New Compliance Assistance Tools
- 6/21/2019 – U.S. Department of Labor to Increase Voluntary Compliance Partnership Program with International and National Labor Unions
- 6/12/2019 – U.S. Department of Labor Announces Upgraded Data System to Assist Mine Operators in Ensuring Compliance with Mine Safety and Health Regulations
- 2/6/2019 – U.S. Department of Labor Announces New Compliance Assistance Tool
- 1/25/2019 – U.S. Department of Labor Provides Compliance Assistance Resources to Secure Employee Benefits
- 10/24/2018 – U.S. Department of Labor Provides Compliance Assistance Resources To Secure Employee Benefits
- 10/17/2018 – U.S. Department of Labor Announces New Compliance Assistance Tools To Assist New and Small Businesses
- 10/10/2017 – U.S. Department of Labor Announces Disability-Related Compliance Assistance Resources for Employers and Employees
- 10/3/2018 – Compliance Assistance for Association Health Plans Now Available at Employer.gov
- 9/27/2018 – U.S. Department of Labor Provides Compliance Assistance Resources to Keep Workers Safe from Trenching-Related
- 9/20/2018 – U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Announces New Policies to Increase
- 8/28/2018 – U.S. Department of Labor Announces New Office of Compliance Initiatives to Expand Compliance Outreach