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Wages & Hours

Review duties before assuming outside sales reps are exempt

08/05/2008
Some kinds of employees are exempt from the overtime provisions of the FLSA. They include so-called “outside” salespeople who are “actively engaged in activities directed toward the consummation of his own sales, at least to the extent of obtaining a commitment to buy from the person to whom he is selling.” It’s a tough test …

Courts hesitate to intervene in church leaders’ employment disputes

08/05/2008
While many employees who work for religious organizations are covered by state and federal discrimination and contract laws, some are not. Those positions that involve execution of religious doctrines probably aren’t covered …

ADA retaliation settlement gives officer promotion, pay

08/05/2008
Lance Lazoff, an officer with the Colorado Springs Police Department, will be promoted to sergeant with back pay and benefits to settle his retaliation lawsuit against the city. Lazoff alleged that, despite an exemplary service record, he was denied promotion to the rank of sergeant because of his vocal support for his wife’s claim under the ADA …

Paying off vacation at termination

08/05/2008

Q. We have a policy that vacation pay is not paid at termination unless the employee attends an exit interview at which he signs a release of any claims he may have. Is this permitted? …

Paying exempt employees on an hourly basis

08/05/2008
Q. We have several positions that satisfy the duties tests for the so-called “white collar” exemptions (executive, administrative and professional). We want to pay these people hourly, rather than on a salary basis, because sometimes they perform work that would be considered nonexempt. Can we do this? …

Federal court clarifies ‘Protected activity’ under the FLSA

08/04/2008
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has issued an important ruling in a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case. It marks the first time the court has defined exactly what the FLSA means when it refers to filing a wage-and-hour “complaint.” The court’s decision is important because it means employers that punish employees who file complaints may be liable for retaliation …

Is time off for voting required? Paid?

08/04/2008
Q. Must an employer give employees time off to vote? If so, must we pay employees for the time they spend voting? …

Volunteer services and FLSA compliance

08/04/2008
Q. We are a for-profit health care facility licensed by the state of Texas. Can we use volunteers to perform services at our facility without compensation? For example,  the wife of one of our clients wants to volunteer her services in exchange for us waiving the daily-use fee we charge her husband. Are these volunteer services exempt from the wage-and-hour requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? … 

Try these 10 creative alternatives to handing out pink slips

08/01/2008

Laying off workers can strain more than the employees who lose their jobs and the managers who have to deliver the bad news. Before your organization starts handing out pink slips, consider some alternatives that have worked for employers during past economic slumps …

Measure effectiveness to make sure flex plans work for you

08/01/2008
Your organization wouldn’t offer flexible work arrangements like flextime and compressed workweeks if managers didn’t believe the benefits—better employee engagement, recruitment and retention—outweighed the costs. Still, a recent survey by Hewitt Associates found that few organizations have formal and consistent policies in place to manage their flex programs …