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Compensation & Benefits

Staffing company owes $3 million to guest workers

05/07/2008
 The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has directed Advanced Professional Marketing Inc. (APMI), a medical staffing company based in New York City, to pay almost $3 million in back wages to more than 150 H-1B guest workers …

Chief judge takes New York to court over low pay

05/07/2008
Chief Judge Judith Kaye has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the state’s 1,250 judges claiming the political process has denied them their constitutional rights to an “adequate” salary. The reason: The New York Legislature hasn’t given them a raise in a decade …

And you thought those tip jars never amounted to much

05/07/2008
After Starbucks baristas won a $105 million verdict in California over tip-sharing, a former barista has filed a nearly identical lawsuit against the company in New York …

Absent without leave: Can we fire for violating vacation policy?

05/06/2008
Q. We recently could not reach an employee who works off-site. Then we learned he was responding to customer messages by saying he was on vacation. After we learned this, he contacted his supervisor and said he had been on vacation and would be on vacation the rest of the week. His supervisor reports that he had not requested vacation time beforehand—and our policy states that vacation time must be preapproved. This employee had been a marginal performer, and now his supervisor wants to fire him. Can we fire him for this? …

Ensure FLSA exemption is for actual job—Not theoretical one

05/06/2008
When it comes to the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers can’t afford to make classification mistakes. Only exempt employees lose out on overtime when they work more than 40 hours per week. The U.S. Department of Labor—and courts—strictly interpret what constitutes exempt work and what does not …

DOL files back-Wage suit against Aggregate Industries

05/06/2008
The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $1 million in back wages for 302 Denver-area employees of Aggregate Industries in Golden. The lawsuit claims the company paid truck drivers on a per-load basis without regard to the number of hours they worked, resulting in unpaid overtime …

Hourly computer programmers and overtime pay

05/06/2008
Q. We employ computer programmers who write sophisticated custom software programs for clients. We bill their services by the hour and pay them by the hour, based on their experience and the work involved. The hourly rates we pay range from $30 to $80 per hour. Sometimes, there is a rush on a project and the programmers have to work overtime. Do we have to pay time and a half the hourly rate if the programmers work over 40 hours per week? ….

Do we need an attorney to represent us during unemployment comp hearings?

05/05/2008
Q. Should a Texas employer hire an attorney to represent it in an unemployment compensation proceeding where the claimant is represented by counsel?

Texas court to rehear ruling on whether premises owner can avoid tort liability

05/05/2008
The Texas Supreme Court in April granted a petition to rehear its decision that a premises owner was protected from tort liability under the state’s workers’ compensation law because it was also a general contractor …

Even small differences can justify different treatment

05/05/2008
An employee sometimes will look for any reason to file a lawsuit—especially if she thinks she has been treated unfairly but doesn’t have any direct evidence. That’s one good reason for justifying all employment-related decisions …