On October 30, 2023, President Biden took a major step in regulating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) with the issuance of the "Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence." The executive order is lengthy and identifies several areas of concern with the use of AI, including cybersecurity, competition, labor, health, privacy, and education. While the executive order is focused on directing federal agencies to achieve specific goals, it will have a broad impact on private entities as well.

Some of the impact stemming from this document is evident from the text itself. Private entities will undoubtedly be affected by the wage and hour and union implications contained in the executive order. For instance, it tasks the U.S. Secretary of Labor with consulting labor unions, workers, and other outside entities to "develop and publish principles and best practices for employers that could be used to mitigate AI's potential harms to employees' well-being and maximize its potential benefits."

The executive order also directs the Secretary of Labor to issue guidance to ensure that any employer using AI tools to monitor or augment its employees' work are compensating their employees for all hours worked under the Fair Labor Standards Act. This marks the first time that the Biden administration has expressed concerns regarding how AI is being used in the wage and hour context. This means that the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division will likely issue guidance regarding the interplay between AI and wage and hour laws.