The comment period on the Department of Labor joint-employer proposal came to a close earlier this week with more than 12,500 public comments having been submitted. As drafted, DOL’s proposed joint employer regulation employs a new four-part test to determine joint employer status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Those four components include the power to hire and fire, the power to set schedules and other “conditions of employment”, the power to set pay, and finally maintaining employment records. As expected, a number of business groups filed supportive comments, while the AFL-CIO, the National Employment Law Project and a number of leading Congressional democrats opposed the new standard claiming that it circumvents the original Congressional intent of the FLSA.