Month: June 2026

President Trump on Monday adjusted tariffs on some aluminum, copper and steel imports.

In a proclamation, the president lowered tariffs on some aluminum and steel derivative products, including agricultural equipment and certain heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems, from 25 percent to 15 percent.

President Trump initially imposed 25 percent tariffs on aluminum and steel derivative products on April 2. In doing so, he cited Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 — which gives the president the authority to impose restrictions on imports under national security grounds.

The president stated Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick recommended that he reduce those tariffs, citing “recent circumstances” that “have affected and are affecting” domestic industries that use the aforementioned equipment.

“These products also serve an important role in productive domestic economic activity,” the proclamation states. “For example, American farmers use agricultural equipment to produce the food upon which our Nation relies; construction equipment is essential for the continued reindustrialization of our Nation; and material-handling equipment enables industrial logistics and factory operations.”

Under the order, companies from certain foreign countries can qualify for a 10 percent tariff on products “composed” entirely of aluminum or steel that was melted and poured in the U.S.

That provision applies to companies located in Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the European Union.

As for Canadian and Mexican products “that qualify for preferential tariff treatment” under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade, 25 percent tariffs will apply “only to the non-U.S. content” of the product.

“For purposes of this clause, ‘non-U.S. content’ means the total value of the product minus the value attributable to parts produced in the United States,” the proclamation reads.

President Trump first implemented Section 232 tariffs on aluminum and steel imports in 2018, during his first term in office.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division today issued four opinion letters designed to promote clarity, consistency, and transparency in the application of federal wage and hour standards under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The opinion letters provide official written interpretations from the division that address real-world questions from individuals, companies, or organizations. They explain how the FLSA applies to the specific factual circumstances presented and may also have a broader interest to others impacted by the same or similar issues.

“Opinion letters explain how the laws enforced by the division apply in specific situations and circumstances that are faced by employees, employers, and others every day across America,” said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Andrew Rogers. “The letters issued today explicate important and longstanding principles under the Fair Labor Standards Act, including compensable time, exemptions, and bonuses included in the regular rate of pay.”

The following opinion letters were issued today:

• FLSA2026-5: Whether an employee exempt pursuant to paragraph 13(a)(1) of the FLSA can perform additional work in a secondary role at an hourly rate, and, if so, what overtime implications may arise.
• FLSA2026-6: Whether a bonus calculated by comparing an employee’s total straight-time and overtime earnings to the total straight-time and overtime earnings of all employees eligible for the bonus is a “percentage of total earnings” bonus under 29 C.F.R. 778.210 that provides for the simultaneous payment of any overtime compensation due on the bonus, thus satisfying the FLSA’s overtime pay requirement.
• FLSA2026-7: Whether time spent during a meal break voluntarily traversing an employer’s premises and passing through a controlled access entry and exit is compensable under the FLSA when the employer allots employees a 30-minute meal period during which they are allowed to remain on the premises.
• FLSA2026-8: Whether certain pre-shift activities by hospital employees are compensable work and, if so, whether the hospital’s practice of rounding employees’ clock-in time to their scheduled shift start time is permissible.