The Internal Revenue Service will allow businesses hiring qualified veterans additional time, beyond the 28-day deadline, to submit forms for certification to claim veteran tax credits, according to a notice from the agency released Feb. 9.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Feb. 9 expanded throughout the entire country its E-Verify “Self Check” program, which allows job seekers to check their own employment eligibility status before seeking employment.

The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration and Wage and Hour Division Feb. 10 issued a final rule on the H-2B labor certification program for temporary nonagricultural workers that modifies the employer application and recruitment process and adds protections for both H-2B and U.S. workers.

The Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has extended to Feb. 21 the comment period for a proposal that would revise regulations pertaining to federal contractors' nondiscrimination and affirmative action obligations for individuals with disabilities, DOL announced Feb. 7.

Retaliation charges accounted for the highest percentage of private sector discrimination charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in fiscal year 2011, while charges alleging unlawful bias based on religion or national origin were the fastest-growing categories, according to final enforcement and litigation statistics released by the agency Jan. 25.

A federal district court in New York has granted preliminary approval to a $99 million proposed settlement of a nationwide wage and hour class action against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp., potentially benefiting more than 7,000 current and former sales employees, representatives for both sides announced Jan. 25 (In re Novartis Wage & Hour Litig., S.D.N.Y., No. 06-MD-1794, preliminary approval of settlement 1/25/12).

A large employer that offers a variety of health insurance benefits, such as major medical benefits and integrated vision plans, should begin now to identify which 2012 plan year benefits will be subject to Form W-2 reporting in January 2013, attorneys said during a Jan. 17 American Law Institute-American Bar Association webinar.

Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., unlawfully prohibited registered nurses from wearing union ribbons in immediate patient care areas during a union organizing drive, a divided National Labor Relations Board ruled Dec. 30 (Saint John's Health Ctr., 357 N.L.R.B. No. 170, 12/30/11 [released 1/5/12]).