President Trump? President Clinton? A Workplace Law Preview

Either Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Hillary Clinton will almost certainly be inaugurated as our nation's 45th president on January 20, 2017. In the four years (or more) that follow, one of these two candidates will be in charge of the executive branch, will have an opportunity to select judges to serve in the federal courts, and could wield significant influence over Congress.

Whoever is elected, the impact on workplace law will be significant. Each candidate has made numerous policy statements relating to labor and employment law issues, each signaling some massive potential changes. While campaign promises are not always kept and each candidate reserves the right to alter course once in office, we can offer some general ideas about what the next four years could look like under President Trump or President Clinton.

Immigration

Perhaps the cornerstone of the Trump campaign is his position on immigration. Although "building a wall" has received the most attention, for workplace law purposes, the most significant changes that could come about under a Trump administration would be seeking to deport some segment of undocumented workers from the labor force (although he recently indicated a possible "softening" on this position), mandating E-Verify to check the employment eligibility of all workers in the country, and altering the temporary work visa programs (such as H1-Bs) which allow employers to bring on highly skilled foreign workers (either by significantly decreasing the number of visas issued or increasing prevailing wages for such workers and otherwise encouraging the hiring of Americans).

Clinton supports a plan creating a simple path to citizenship for undocumented workers with no criminal record, and does not advocate wholescale deportations. She would also attempt to restore President Obama's Executive Action on immigration reform, specifically aiming to restore Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) (which were put on hold by the Supreme Court).

Further contrasting Trump, Clinton would increase the amount of temporary work visas given to highly skilled foreign workers, believing that the program allows businesses to hire the best workers at the lowest cost.

Employment Discrimination

Clinton has made gender discrimination one of the centerpieces of her campaign, and has supported the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution to secure equal pay for women. Trump has not gone that far, but he has stated in media interviews that he supports the concept of equal pay for equal work.

The Human...