Overview
- The NPRM would replace the six-factor, equal-weight 2024 analysis with a framework that prioritizes two core factors: the nature and degree of control over the work and the worker’s opportunity for profit or loss.
- The proposal extends the same classification standard to the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act to create a single federal approach.
- The draft clarifies that requiring legal compliance, health and safety measures, insurance, deadlines, or typical quality terms does not by itself show employer control, and it emphasizes actual practice over contract language while dropping investment comparisons to the company.
- Public comments are open from February 27 to April 28, 2026, as the Wage and Hour Division continues to forgo the 2024 rule in investigations and several lawsuits over that rule remain paused.
- Reporting and DOL analysis indicate contractor-reliant sectors such as trucking, healthcare, retail, and app-based platforms could benefit, with the agency estimating 250,000–750,000 additional independent-contractor relationships, though stricter state tests still apply.