Recent labor regs will cost $80 billion over 10 years, manufacturers association claims

Washington – Labor regulations issued during the Obama administration’s final year create a “significant burden” on industries and workers, and will lead to about $80 billion in compliance costs over the next decade, according to a recent report from the National Association of Manufacturers.

NAM examined “seven notable regulations and alterations of labor law” from the Department of Labor (including OSHA), the Equal Opportunity Commission and the National Labor Relations Board. OSHA regulations included the new silica standards and a recordkeeping rule requiring certain establishments to electronically submit injury and illness data annually.

The association concluded that DOL has been “one of the most aggressive regulators in the federal government” since 2009. The department completed almost twice as many major labor regulations each year compared to the previous four administrations, which averaged 1.6 major rules from the department per year. DOL has completed three major rules per year during the first seven years under the Obama administration and will likely finish six in 2016.

Additional claims:

• Organizations will spend more than 410 million hours on paperwork.
• More than 155,000 jobs will be lost.
• Compliance with the silica standards will cost industry $550 million to $1.4 billion.
• The recordkeeping regulation will cost $1.1 billion, nearly 80 times higher than what was first estimated.

“It has been troubling to watch regulation after regulation with major economic costs come from this administration,” NAM Senior Vice President of Policy and Government Relations Aric Newhouse said in a press release. “These regulations are making it harder for manufacturers to continue to create jobs and economic opportunity. … This study demonstrates the true impact of regulations that are duplicative, complicated and burdensome.”