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Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division Opinion Letter (DOL or WHD Opinion Letter)
Practical Law Glossary Item 5-507-1508 (Approx. 3 pages)
Glossary
Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division Opinion Letter (DOL or WHD Opinion Letter)
A letter issued by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the Department of Labor (DOL) concerning the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), as well as, on a less frequent basis, the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA) and the wage garnishment provisions of the Consumer Credit Protection Act (CCPA).
Employers, employees, and other entities can request opinion letters directly or through counsel. The WHD processes requests "as expeditiously as possible" and has the discretion to determine:
- Which opinion letter requests should receive a response.
- The form of the agency's response. Guidance issued in response to an FLSA opinion letter request may be:
- an opinion letter signed by the WHD Administrator;
- an opinion letter signed by a lower-level official (non-Administrator opinion letters); or
- an Administrator Interpretation. Administrator Interpretations provide clarification for all affected employers and employees, rather than in a response to a single entity's specific circumstances.
In 2010, the DOL ended its long-standing practice of issuing opinion letters in favor of the more generally applicable Administrator Interpretations. In 2017, however, the DOL under the Trump administration announced that the agency would reinstate the use of opinion letters as one method of providing guidance to stakeholders.
For more information, see DOL: Final Rulings and Opinion Letters.