U.S. Department of Labor
Articles covering policy from U.S. Department of Labor. Sorted by the agency's own publication date.
US Department of Labor suspends Cognizant PERM filings amid fraud investigation
The Department of Labor has suspended Cognizant's permanent labor certification filings pending a fraud investigation. Practitioners should know what this means for pending and future green card applications.
Schedule A Shortage-Occupation List: How Pre-Certification Bypasses PERM, and What the 2023 RFI Means for Expansion
How DOL's Schedule A pre-certification mechanism at 20 CFR 656.5 and 20 CFR 656.15 lets qualifying occupations skip ETA-9089 recruitment entirely — the regulatory architecture, the 2023 RFI on expanding the list, and what an expansion would mean for employers.
PERM Form ETA-9089: Process, Recruitment Timing, and Prevailing-Wage Determination
How DOL's PERM labor certification works in practice: the ETA-9141 prevailing-wage request, mandatory recruitment, and filing the electronic ETA-9089 in FLAG.
H-1B Labor Condition Application: Wage Levels I–IV and the 10-Day Notice Posting Window
How OFLC assigns H-1B wage levels I–IV on Form ETA-9035, the four attestations on the LCA, the 7-day filing window before a certified LCA can be used, and the 10-day worksite notice requirement at 20 CFR 655.734.
PERM Prevailing Wage Determination: OFLC's Skill-Level Worksheet for Levels I–IV
How OFLC's November 2009 Prevailing Wage Determination Policy Guidance assigns skill levels I, II, III, and IV to a PERM position, the five-factor worksheet, and how to write an ETA-9141 that survives the analysis.
EB-2 Schedule A: Nurses, Physical Therapists, and the Pre-Certified Labor Certification
How DOL's Schedule A regulation at 20 CFR 656.5 pre-certifies labor for registered nurses and physical therapists — and what employers must still file with USCIS under 8 CFR 204.5 to convert that pre-certification into an approved I-140.
Surviving a PERM Audit: Recruitment File, Applicant Log, and the SVP/SOC Cross-Check
What DOL audit letters ask for under 20 CFR 656.20, how to assemble the recruitment file and applicant log, and why the SVP-to-SOC mapping has to line up.
PERM Denial Appeals: BALCA Review Timing and the 30-Day Reconsideration Window
How to challenge a PERM denial under 20 CFR 656.24 and 656.26: the 30-day reconsideration window, the record on appeal, and what BALCA can and cannot do.
PERM Supervised Recruitment: When DOL Takes Over the Process
How 20 CFR 656.21 supervised recruitment works, why DOL invokes it, and what the employer can and can't control once a Certifying Officer is driving the recruitment plan.