Amid a faltering economy, and with primaries for the 2008 elections now in process, the political landscape grows more uncertain for businesses and employers. In the coming months, four issues currently under consideration in Congress loom particularly large because of their potential impact on companies.

Despite revisions to the Fair Labor Standards Act in 2004, determining how to properly classify workers remains an ongoing struggle for many companies. That is evident from the amount of money the U.S. Department of Labor has collected from businesses that failed to properly compensate their employees for overtime.

If your employee is involved in an accident while working, you can be held liable. Where a company knew or had a reason to know that a driver of its commercial vehicles could create a risk of harm to others, it creates a “negligent entrustment.” And the stakes can be high.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently weighed in with new guidelines outlining how working parents or those caring for elderly parents may be able to claim discrimination in the workplace. The guidance indicates that employers must take extra care when dealing with caregivers.

Severance agreements have been challenged in some recent court cases, particularly agreements that require employees to waive their right to file an administrative charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).