United States Employment 2024 Highlights And 2025 Outlook Lexology

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Oct 31, 2025, 6:20 AM

united states employment 2024 highlights and 2025 outlook lexology

Access real-time intent data to measure your success and maximise engagement. Use advanced tools to take your marketing strategy to the next level. Measure the effectiveness of your content against peers. Find out more about Lexology or get in touch by visiting our About page. “In 2025, the Trump Administration will presumably scale back many of the Biden Administration’s rules and policies on labor and employment law issues and unwind related agency actions that were unfriendly to employers.” In 2024, the federal government implemented a number of employee-friendly laws and regulations, some of which have been scaled back or successfully challenged in court.

In 2025, we anticipate that the Trump Administration will rescind some of these rules and be less active in enforcing affirmative or new obligations on employers. This article outlines some of the key highlights from 2024 and looks ahead to 2025. Overtime Rule Expanded and Then Cut Back In 2024, the US Department of Labor updated the “salary test,” which, along with the “duties test,” is used to determine if an employee falls within one of the “bona fide executive, administrative or... The salary threshold increased from $35,658 to $43,888 annually effective July, 1, 2024. The salary threshold was set to increase again to $58,656 effective January 1, 2025.

However, on November 15, 2024, a federal judge in Texas struck down this rule, finding that the policy went beyond the US Department of Labor’s authority. Many employers increased the salaries of workers as of July 1, 2024, in order to comply with the new rule so that employees would remain exempt. Those employers are now permitted to roll back those salary increases but doing so can be tricky for employers for reasons such as employee morale. Employers also need to consider state law salary threshold requirements, which exceed those of federal law in some states. The US Department of Labor has the option to appeal the Texas court’s ruling. Such an appeal would be heard by the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which has a decidedly conservative majority of judges.

However, even if an appeal is filed now, it is possible that the Department of Labor may not pursue its defense of the rule once President-elect Trump takes office in January 2025. Federal and State Scrutiny of Non-Competes An official website of the United States government Here is how you know The .gov means it's official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. 2024–34 Employment Projections were released on August 28, 2025. Please see below for the 2024 Highlights and 2025 Outlook for US Benefits, US Employment & US Mobility. UNITED STATES: BENEFITS - 2024 HIGHLIGHTS AND 2025 OUTLOOK UNITED STATES: EMPLOYMENT – 2024 HIGHLIGHTS AND 2025 OUTLOOK

UNITED STATES: MOBILITY – 2024 HIGHLIGHTS AND 2025 OUTLOOK RETURN TO INSIGHTS: EMPLOYMENT | BENEFITS | MOBILITY – Q4 2024 Written by Kim A. Leffert, Gabrielle Levin, Andrew S. Rosenman and Ruth Zadikany from Mayer Brown LLP on November 27, 2024 In 2024, the federal government implemented a number of employee-friendly laws and regulations, some of which have been scaled back or successfully challenged in court.

In 2025, we anticipate that the Trump Administration will rescind some of these rules and be less active in enforcing affirmative or new obligations on employers. This article outlines some of the key highlights from 2024 and looks ahead to 2025. In 2024, the US Department of Labor updated the “salary test,” which, along with the “duties test,” is used to determine if an employee falls within one of the “bona fide executive, administrative or... The salary threshold increased from $35,658 to $43,888 annually effective July, 1, 2024. The salary threshold was set to increase again to $58,656 effective January 1, 2025. However, on November 15, 2024, a federal judge in Texas struck down this rule, finding that the policy went beyond the US Department of Labor’s authority.

Many employers increased the salaries of workers as of July 1, 2024, in order to comply with the new rule so that employees would remain exempt. Those employers are now permitted to roll back those salary increases but doing so can be tricky for employers for reasons such as employee morale. Employers also need to consider state law salary threshold requirements, which exceed those of federal law in some states. The US Department of Labor has the option to appeal the Texas court’s ruling. Such an appeal would be heard by the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which has a decidedly conservative majority of judges. However, even if an appeal is filed now, it is possible that the Department of Labor may not pursue its defense of the rule once President-elect Trump takes office in January 2025.

In April 2024, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its “final rule” prohibiting virtually all employment-based non-compete agreements. The final rule, which was scheduled to take effect in early September 2024, provided for limited exceptions to the ban on non-competes, such as for non-competes in connection with the bona fide sale of... Following legal challenges filed in several different courts, a federal judge in Texas issued a nationwide injunction in late August that blocked implementation of the final rule. The FTC has appealed the ruling to the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, although the appeal may well be abandoned once President-elect Trump takes office. We expect that he will replace current FTC Chairperson Lina Kahn, who spearheaded the FTC’s effort to ban non-competes. As the global economy adjusts to technological acceleration, demographic shifts, and evolving workforce expectations, the United States labor market stands at a critical juncture in 2025.

Companies that navigate these complexities effectively will not only survive but thrive. This Annual Employment Outlook offers a comprehensive, data-driven analysis of 2024 hiring patterns and presents forecasted trends for 2025 and beyond, providing critical insights to support strategic workforce planning for HR leaders, business owners,... After a volatile 2022–2023 period marked by mass layoffs, inflation concerns, and economic recalibrations, the U.S. labor market regained some equilibrium in 2024. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS):

Healthcare accounted for nearly 32% of all net new jobs, largely driven by an aging population and expanded healthcare initiatives.Professional and business services, particularly IT consulting and management roles, also added significant headcount.Manufacturing rebounded... Expert Insight: “Businesses in 2024 focused on lean, strategic hiring, prioritizing competencies directly linked to profitability and resilience,” remarked Becky Frankiewicz, President, North America at ManpowerGroup. Access real-time intent data to measure your success and maximise engagement. Use advanced tools to take your marketing strategy to the next level. Measure the effectiveness of your content against peers. Find out more about Lexology or get in touch by visiting our About page.

"The developments of 2024 highlight the ‘seesaw’ nature of the American political environment, particularly in the sphere of regulatory initiatives, with agencies issuing regulations intended to protect workers and their retirement benefits only to... The affected agencies have appealed, but with the upcoming change in the White House, it appears that the agencies’ positions may ‘seesaw’ the other way. Further, in 2024, the field of employee benefits fully lived up to its reputation as one of the most litigious areas of law and one of the most complex in terms of regulations." A construction worker carries steel decking at the site of a construction of a housing project, Thursday, July 31, 2025, in Portland, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. job market was much weaker in 2024 and early this year than originally reported, adding to concerns about the health of the nation’s economy. Employers added 911,000 fewer jobs than originally reported in the year that ended in March 2025, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. The department issues the so-called benchmark revisions every year. They are intended to better account for new businesses and ones that had gone out of business. The numbers issued Tuesday are preliminary.

Final revisions will come out in February 2026. The revision showed that leisure and hospitality firms — including hotels and restaurants — added 176,000 fewer jobs than originally reported, professional and business services companies 158,000 fewer and retailers 126,000 fewer. An official website of the United States government Here is how you know The .gov means it's official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely. The Employment Projections (EP) program develops information about the labor market for the Nation as a whole for 10 years in the future. Check out the highlights of the 2024–34 projections, including the fastest growing occupations overall, the occupations expected to have the most new jobs, the fastest growing occupations that require a bachelor's degree or more,... (This video has background music but no spoken words.)

United States Employment 2024 Highlights And 2025 Outlook Lexology

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