SimplyHR | Employment & Labor Blog 

On February 10, 2014 the Department of the Treasury issued final regulations under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) that delay enforcement of the shared responsibility penalties for mid-size employers until 2016. Mid-size employers are employers with 50-99 full-time employees in the preceding calendar year. Full-time employees consist of employees who work 30 or more hours per week. Previously, in 2013, the Treasury Department delayed enforcement of the penalties for all employers from January 1, 2014 until January 1, 2015.

On February 5, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board announced proposed amendments to its regulations, which would make it easier for unions to organize employees. The proposed amendments would permit unions to hold workplace elections more quickly after filing an election petition. The majority of elections now take place 45 to 60 days after the union obtains necessary signatures to file a petition. It is estimated that the proposed amendments would shorten the time period by days or even weeks.