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Wages & Hours

Be prepared to back up hours worked for exempt staff, too

12/01/2006

You carefully track all hours worked by nonexempt employees. But do you know how many hours your exempt employees work? That can become a problem if you misclassify an employee as exempt when the person should have been hourly …

Prepare to pay overtime to more delivery drivers

12/01/2006
You no longer can rely on the "motor carrier exemption" in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to avoid paying overtime to delivery drivers who use vans and pickup trucks on their routes.

Navigating the National Labor Relations Act

12/01/2006

Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) in 1935 largely as a way of raising depression-era wages. The law gives employees basic rights to participate in unions, bargain collectively about compensation/ work conditions and engage in other protected "concerted activities" …

Don’t dock hours from salaried employee’s pay

12/01/2006

Q. We have a salaried employee who holds down a second job. Sometimes, she leaves early on Fridays and comes in late on Mondays because the second job overlaps with our office hours. Can we deduct anything from her pay after she has used up her vacation and leave time? Or do we have to pay her even though she leaves early and comes in late? —D.J., Virginia

Pay travel expenses for new, longer commute?

12/01/2006

Q. One of our employees normally reports to a facility. But he’s out on workers’ comp and is doing light duty in the office, which is an extra hour of commuting time. I know we don’t have to pay for his commuting time, but what about his travel expenses? —M.T., Massachusetts

Unpaid helper or official employee? Beware blurry line

12/01/2006

If you allow someone to perform work yet you never officially hire the person, don’t think you can avoid paying by calling her a volunteer. She’s your employee and must earn at least minimum wage …

Oral promise of extra pay is as binding as contract

12/01/2006

In Georgia, employers that promise to pay a bonus, commission or other extra compensation to employees had better be prepared to follow through. Even though those promises aren’t in writing, employees may be likely to hold you to any supervisor’s spoken promises …

Paying more for unskilled labor? You’re not alone

12/01/2006

By now, you’ve adjusted your labor budget to accommodate New Jersey’s new minimum wage of $7.15 per hour, which took effect Oct. 1. Rest assured, you’re not alone …

Court Ruling May Ease Threat of Class-Action FLSA Suits

12/01/2006

In recent years, employers have faced an onslaught of Fair Labor Standards Act class-action lawsuits over allegedly unpaid overtime. Now, a second district court in the 3rd Circuit has dismissed combined state and federal overtime class-action lawsuits …

Must you pay workers for time spent learning English?

12/01/2006

If you have non-English speaking employees, you may be making efforts to help improve their language skills. But in which cases must you pay employees for that training time? …