A federal district court judge in Washington, D.C., ruled today that the NLRB acted within the scope of its authority under the National Labor Relations Act in promulgating “Subpart A” of a Final Rule entitled “Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act.”

On the day that comments were due on proposed regulations beefing up affirmative action requirements for disabled workers, the Office of Federal Contracts Compliance Programs of the U.S. Department of Labor announced a short extension of the deadline.

On December 27, 2011, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would provide minimum wage and overtime protections to workers who provide in-home care services for the elderly and infirm. The change will affect nearly two million workers.

Effective January 3, 2012, commercial drivers will no longer be permitted to use hand-held cellular phones while operating commercial motor vehicles. Violators of this new federal regulation will face stiff civil penalties.

The date for posting the new notice enumerating employee rights under the National Labor Relations Act has been postponed, a second time, and is now set to be effective on April 30, 2012.