The Latest Breaking News from Labor Department

Twenty-five states announced on January 26 that they had filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration alleging that, in their view, the Department of Labor’s new rule allowing for the consideration of ESG factors in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-governed retirement investments increased portfolio risk and violated the law:

The U.S. labor market burned red-hot in January as hiring unexpectedly surged and unemployment fell to a 53-year low, defying recession forecasts and adding pressure on the Federal Reserve to keep raising interest rates.

A group of 25 Republican attorneys general sued Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and the Labor Department over a Biden administration regulation that gives retirement plan sponsors more freedom to consider environmental, social and governance factors when selecting investments.

Republican state attorneys general are trying to block a Labor Department rule easing the path for investors to consider ESG criteria.

U.S. job openings rose to 11 million in December, a sign the American labor market remains hot and a blow to the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool it off

More than 1,000 people have pleaded guilty or have been convicted of federal charges of defrauding the myriad COVID-19 relief programs that Congress established in the early days of the pandemic

As the new Republican House majority prepares to push back against ESG investing, some House Democrats have launched their own ESG-related caucus to counter Republicans’ efforts:

U.S. inflation continued to slow in December, adding to evidence price pressures have peaked and putting the Federal Reserve on track to again slow the pace of interest-rate hikes.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust traded higher Friday morning after the Labor Department reported low unemployment numbers above 3%.