Paul DeCamp Quoted in "Scalia Nomination Signals Continued Employer-Friendly Bent at Labor"

A new top official does not mean the U.S. Department of Labor will veer from its course of issuing policies favorable to employers on issues including overtime and joint employment, say experts. …

Deputy Secretary of Labor Patrick Pizzella was initially tapped by President Donald Trump as acting DOL secretary, effective July 20.

Then last week, President Trump announced he had nominated Eugene Scalia, a partner in the Washington office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and son of late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, as Mr. Acosta’s successor.

Several observers say they have high regard for Mr. Scalia, but a long vetting process could significantly limit his tenure.

Meanwhile, the DOL is expected to pursue the department’s previously announced policy on issues including overtime and joint employment.

In May, the department issued a long-awaited overtime proposal that increased the salary level below which workers must be paid overtime, but at a level that was lower than the one proposed by the Obama administration.

The DOL also announced a proposal to “revise and clarify” the issue of joint employers in April.

“With regard to the proposed rules that are already publicly issued, (Mr. Scalia) is likely to stay the course,” said Paul DeCamp, a member of Epstein Becker & Green P.C. in Washington.

“He’s not required to, but I would expect him to proceed with final results that are more or less in line with what the department has already proposed,” although “it’s really a decision that he needs to make,” Mr. DeCamp said. …

Employment attorneys praise Mr. Scalia, who co-chaired Gibson Dunn’s labor and employment practice group for 12 years. Mr. DeCamp, who has worked with Mr. Scalia, said he is “very knowledgeable about the full spectrum of laws at the DOL, and he’s going to be a terrific secretary of labor.”