How a Biden Administration Might Impact HR and the Workplace

Each presidential transition brings changes to the HR landscape. When President Donald Trump took office in 2016, he overturned or revised many of his predecessor’s federal regulations, a common trend between administrations of opposing parties. It is also something likely to continue under President-elect Joe Biden.

With any legislative change—regardless of intent or outcome—employers must adapt quickly or risk penalties. This can mean redrafting internal policies, recategorizing workers, changing organizational priorities, rewriting employee handbooks and any other HR responsibility. Essentially, the more prepared an HR team is, the easier it will be for them to succeed in a changing landscape.

Some of the policies upon which Biden campaigned may not come to fruition. Moreover, wide-sweeping workplace changes may be stifled due to congressional gridlock, though Biden will retain the ability to affect change through executive orders.

However, thinking about these issues early can help inform operational planning and prevent last-minute scrambling when change arrives. To that end, this article discusses potential changes employers can expect during a Biden presidency.

Healthcare

The Affordable Care Act

Health care has been a particularly contentious topic for over a decade, ever since the ACA was introduced. Biden supports building off the ACA’s framework and intends to expand a public health option that’s similar to Medicare. Granted, an upcoming (at the time of this writing) Supreme Court case may significantly impact any efforts.

As things currently stand under Biden’s proposed model, the government’s offering would directly compete with insurance providers. The public option would also be available to anyone—even if their employers offer qualified-health plans. Specifics are unclear, but this indicates that small employers may be able to save money by having their workers rely on public health coverage (as opposed to offering it themselves).

Medicare

In addition to an expanded version of the ACA, Biden also supports Medicare expansion. He proposes lowering the eligibility age to 60 (from 65). Since many employees delay their retirement until they are eligible for Medicare coverage, workers may start retiring earlier if this plan is enacted.

Labor Rules and the Future of Work

Biden is very pro-labor, as evidenced by his campaign platforms, and may return to Obama-era labor rules—many of which are viewed as burdens by employers. Specifically, Biden is in favor of a bill called the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.

Among other things, the bill would limit which employees may be classified as independent contractors. It also includes provisions allowing employees to unionize more easily and expands the definition of “joint employer.” Such initiatives would have significant impacts on workers—especially in the current gig economy—and may force corporate restructuring for businesses such as Uber, Postmates and GrubHub. Endorsing such policies clearly outlines how Biden’s labor platform diverges with the Trump-era Department of Labor, which is to say a move that embraces workers more so than employers.

Paid Leave

Paid leave has historically been a priority for Biden during his political career. The president-elect is currently pushing for 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave. Progressives want to expand that effort, in the form of the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act. The act would expand the qualified reasons for taking paid leave and opens eligibility to more workers. Biden supports many components of the act but hasn’t fully endorsed it. This indicates that some version of this legislation—namely, expanded paid leave—may come early during Biden’s administration.

For more information on how a Biden Administration might impact HR, click here.