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Wages & Hours

CVS fined for child labor, overtime and timecard violations

03/01/2008

CVS Caremark Corp. was fined $226,000 by the U.S. Labor Department for changing employee timecards and violating child labor laws. The department found 43 violations at stores in New York and six other states …

The policy and legal implications of discussing compensation

03/01/2008

Q. We recently had salary adjustment, and some of our employees have been comparing their raises. But we have a policy that states that compensation matters are confidential. Executives have asked HR to speak to the offending employees and gently remind them about our policy. I am concerned that if I speak to any of the employees, the problem will just get worse. Ideas? …

Unreported tips could spell high workers’ compensation payout

03/01/2008

Employers and employees in cash businesses often bluff, wink and nod their way around the edge of wage-and-hour law legality. But when it’s time to settle workers’ compensation claims, all the cards must go on the table. A recent Florida workers’ compensation case shows just how wrong things can go when employers give their employees unrequested advice on reporting income …

Fortune names 9 Chicago employers among best to work for

03/01/2008
Fortune magazine recently published its 2008 list of “100 Best Companies to Work For,” and nine Chicago employers made the list …

Wage assignment and employers’ responsibilities

03/01/2008

Tough economic times raise some tricky HR issues—for example, when an employee’s financial straits begin to affect his employer …

Brown sues drywall company for $5 million in W&H violations

03/01/2008
California’s attorney general recently filed suit against a Southern California drywall contracting firm for what he called “a sophisticated and heartless scheme” to cheat its employees out of wages. Attorney General Jerry Brown sued Irvine-based Interwall Development Systems, claiming that it failed to pay its employees overtime …

Drivers’ overtime suit gets class-Action status

03/01/2008
On Jan. 4, a California Superior Court judge certified a class action brought by drivers who claimed they had been denied meal and rest breaks in violation of California law. The suit was brought by approximately 345 White Cap Industries delivery drivers …

Paycheck stubs’ new look for 2008

03/01/2008
Q. Are there new requirements regarding the type of information that should be included on an employee’s pay statement? …

Save big bucks: Consult Labor Dept. before denying overtime

03/01/2008
Violate the Fair Labor Standards Act at your peril. If you incorrectly classify an employee as exempt and refuse to pay overtime, you face a possible three-year willful violation statute of limitations—plus the possibility a court will double what you owe. Before you decide an employee is exempt, consult the U.S. Labor Department or a qualified employment law attorney …

AT&T and BellSouth face back-Wage suit

03/01/2008

AT&T Corp. and BellSouth Corp., based in Atlanta, have been hit with a class-action unpaid wage and overtime lawsuit in U.S. District Court, Northern District. The lawsuit seeks back wages for time worked before and after shifts and during meals and rest breaks on behalf of employees in call centers in several states …