As we blogged earlier this year, in March 2018, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) announced a new program, referred to as PAID (or, Payroll Audit Independent Determination), under which employers may voluntarily apply for DOL assistance in resolving potential claims for wage underpayment under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). As previously … Continue Reading
In a case of straightforward statutory interpretation, the U.S. Supreme Court held on April 2, 2018 in Encino Motorcars LLC v. Navarro that service advisors employed at car dealerships are exempt from the overtime pay requirement under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The dispute began in 2011, when service advisors employed by Encino Motorcars, … Continue Reading
On March 6, 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) announced a new, nationwide pilot program which it claims will facilitate quick and efficient resolutions of Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) minimum wage and overtime violations by allowing employers to promptly pay back wages to employees and at the same time avoid time consuming litigation … Continue Reading
Few issues strike fear into the hearts of payroll professionals like trying to calculate overtime pay, especially given the challenges associated with determining the “regular rate of pay,” which serves as the foundation for the calculation of overtime pay for non-exempt, hourly employees. On Monday, March 5, 2018, the California Supreme Court ruled in favor … Continue Reading
Following the Chancellor’s announcement in November’s budget regarding changes to the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates, the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Regulations 2018 have now been laid before Parliament. The Regulations implement these increases from 1 April 2018: National Living Wage (Over 25’s) – £7.83 (previously £7.50) 21-24 year olds – £7.38 … Continue Reading
Uber, Lyft, Airbnb, Postmates, DoorDash. All are companies participating in what has been labeled the “gig economy,” where tasks are performed by workers on a short-term or freelance basis rather than through long-term or permanent employment. As more people participate in this new, mostly smartphone application or Internet-based work model, litigation has followed centering on … Continue Reading
In the wake of fluctuations in federal labor law, in particular, as interpreted by the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”), regarding who may be considered a joint or co-employer of an employee, in 2017, Arizona enacted its own joint employer law. A.R.S. § 23-1604 makes clear that, at least under Arizona law, a franchisor is not a … Continue Reading
With much of the United States covered in ice and snow, many employers are questioning when they need to pay employees who are affected by weather-related disruptions. All throughout the United States employees have been late to work because they were stuck in the snow or their kids’ school was yet again delayed and businesses … Continue Reading
On January 5, 2018, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reissued 17 advisory Opinion Letters that were published during the final months of former President George W. Bush’s administration, but were subsequently rescinded by the Obama administration. Opinion Letters do not establish new law, but instead are vehicles through … Continue Reading
On Friday, January 5, 2018, the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a statement that it will no longer follow its six-factor test in determining whether an individual is a non-employee intern (rather than an employee) under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), and instead will apply a broader analysis commonly referred to as … Continue Reading
The New York State Department of Labor has issued new, proposed regulations regarding “just-in-time,” “call-in,” and “on-call” pay – or pay required when an employer unexpectedly cancels a covered employee’s shift or calls them into work, or requires them to be on-call. The draft regulations supplement the state’s existing Minimum Wage Order for Miscellaneous Industries … Continue Reading
A federal court recently provided guidance on an issue that still vexes some employers, i.e., when they must pay employees for time spent on tasks immediately before or after a shift. Many employers require employees to take certain steps immediately before or after they start their actual shifts. For example, an employer might require an … Continue Reading
Come January 1, 2018, employees in California and New York will enjoy new and expanded rights to time off work, with pay, to attend to certain family needs. New York, whose law was enacted in 2016 (see our prior post here), boasts its law as being the nation’s “strongest and most comprehensive” on paid family … Continue Reading
As more employers are ‘named and shamed’ in the press for paying below the National Minimum Wage, the immediate question is “How can a large employer, with significant resources, be paying below the NMW by accident?” There are numerous areas where employers may find themselves unwittingly paying below the NMW and on the naughty step … Continue Reading
The Department of Labor (DOL) is appealing a Texas judge’s decision to toss out an Obama-era rule that would have extended overtime pay to some 4 million Americans. As we reported previously, the Secretary of Labor under former President Obama announced a rule raising the salary basis threshold for overtime exemption from $455/week to $913/week, … Continue Reading
On October 13, 2017, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled in a precedential decision that employers are obligated by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to pay their employees for breaks of 20 minutes or less, even if they are logged off their computers and free from any work-related duties. The … Continue Reading
The Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) provides that employers ordinarily must pay their non-exempt employees at least the federal minimum hourly wage of $7.25. However, employers may pay “tipped employees” as little as $2.13 per hour if they regularly earn more than $30 per month in tips, and then make up the difference between the … Continue Reading
In 2016, the Department of Labor issued long-awaited amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) regulations that would have raised the minimum salary for employees exempt under the so-called “white collar” exemptions from $455/week ($23,660 annually) to $913/week ($47,476 annually) (the “Final Rule”). The Final Rule also would have required an upward adjustment to … Continue Reading
In early August, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued two decisions regarding class and collective action waivers. Like its earlier decisions in D.R. Horton, Inc. and Murphy Oil USA, Inc., both decisions supported employers’ use of waivers to eliminate group lawsuits against them in employment cases. The two new cases, … Continue Reading
Oregon is the first state to mandate that the state’s largest employers in the retail industry, as well as in the hospitality and food service industries – those with more than 500 workers – provide employees with their schedules, in writing, at least a week ahead of time. They’ll also have to give workers a … Continue Reading
And here is why we should be careful when construing employment law statutes about attaching too much importance to contrasts between different legislative provisions. I don’t pretend to have spotted this, so hats off to one reader who did and kindly dropped me a line about it.… Continue Reading
One of the last remaining pieces in the jigsaw of what constitutes “normal pay” for the purpose of calculating statutory holiday pay was slotted into place by the Employment Appeal Tribunal on Monday when it confirmed that such calculations should include voluntary overtime. Willetts and Others v. Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council is a claim for … Continue Reading
Newly appointed Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta announced on June 27 that the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) would resume issuing opinion letters in response to employers and employees who submit inquiries seeking fact-specific interpretations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”). Opinion letters are official, interpretative … Continue Reading
On June 7, 2017, the US Department of Labor (DOL) withdrew its 2015 Administrator’s Interpretation on “independent contractor” status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and its 2016 Administrator’s Interpretation for determining “joint employment” under the FLSA. The two guidance memos specifically were intended to increase liability for employers under the Fair Labor Standards … Continue Reading
