From EEOC reporting, DEI, Gender rules and Discrimination Testing, to an expected ramp up of small business audits by the DOL to make sure I-9s are completed properly, are just some of the many changes already being worked on by the new administration in the white house.  President Trump laid out a number of sweeping Executive Orders, many of which are seeing push back, and some may take time to fully go into effect, but all of these can have an impact on your business.  Taxes, minimum wage, use of contractors for your business and a myriad of other items are being proposed or written by Executive Order at lightning speed.  

Most of the immediate changes are from the Federal level, but can have a ripple affect to the local and state levels affecting the private sector. To make things more confusing, depending on whether you have employees in a predominately blue or red state, may also dictate the adoption or even state written laws to help solidify the new administration’s objectives, or on the opposite side, go completely against the administration to codify what that state feels is more appropriate for their population.  On top of this are pre-existing laws like Title 7 and affirmative action that already exist and can add confusion to what is being proposed or rolled out and what a small business should adhere to in order to be compliant.

The good news is that most of these changes will take time.  The trouble for most small businesses though will be in staying on top of all the changes, and knowing what sticks and what doesn’t.  Most HR advisors are giving the advice to hang tight and not make any drastic changes at the moment.  Both in how you hire / fire, and in conducting your normal day to day with your staff.  Law suits are already being filed at record speed from nearly half the states in the US and more challenges are likely to follow.  Interestingly though, some bills are seeing bi-partisan support and may allow some of these new laws to be codified quickly.

While our role at Right Fit PEO is not to advise on all of these changes, we do know how small businesses can suffer with not always having the best resources at their disposal, and where a PEO can make a huge difference in this missing support.  If we can help in your search for the right PEO partner, we’d love to assist you and your business.

Article by: Glen Antwiler

Posted Date: 1/23/2025

www.Right FitPEO.com