The unemployment rate in Indiana continues to creep lower according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law Thursday, intended to provide economic stimulus to those hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Department of Labor issued a rule earlier this week that attempts to help employers decide if a worker is an employee or an independent contractor, but reactions are mixed among groups in the state.

Investigators say the company violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act when it told 25 salaried workers they were exempt from receiving overtime. It also paid more than 100 hourly production workers flat rates for each day, regardless of the number of hours worked that week.

The U.S. Department of Labor says Indianas Ivy Tech Community College system will be one of 18 organizations in the country selected to develop a new model for apprenticeships. The new model aims to increase the number of apprenticeships by reducing federal requirements.

The Department of Workforce Development requested to borrow $300 million from the federal government to pay state unemployment insurance claims.

The plan is titled A Better Future for Every Hoosier and impacts education from early learning programs to K-12 schools to colleges.

Ivy Tech Community College announced a new apprenticeship program Wednesday that will place students in emerging career fields around internet-connected factory robots.

The U.S. Department of Labor says Penske Logistics LLC has agreed to pay $350,000 in back wages to 185 women and offer jobs to 99 women to settle the allegations at its warehouse in Shelbyville. The company denies the discrimination allegations.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declared the opioid crisis a national public health emergency in 2017.