December 4th, 2010 12:10 am
Obama Labor Department Announces Business Harassment Strategy
There are two kinds of licensed professionals you don’t want to see the word “creative” describe: accountants and lawyers. Unfortunately, the top lawyer at the Obama Labor Department just released a to-do list that could double as a well-conceived strategy memo for business-hating bureaucrats concerned they may not have enough power.
In Wall Street Journal columnist John Fund’s recent article the solicitor at Labor proposes the following actions to increase the regulatory burden on private enterprise:
- Identify a public affairs liaison in each Regional Office to send stronger, clearer messages to the regulated community about DOL’s emphasis on litigation.
- Engage in enterprise-wide enforcement. (A euphemism where multiple sites of a business are visited by surprise on the same day by more than one enforcement agent.)
- Engage in greater use of injunctive relief (i.e. litigation and court orders), while also identifying and pursuing test cases to “stretch the meaning of the law.”
With the workforce experiencing 9.8% unemployment, this kind of strategy – and heaven forbid, enforcement – will only make matters far worse.
CFIF on Twitter
CFIF on YouTube