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Wages & Hours

Pay for ‘donning and doffing,’ not waiting

09/01/2003
Issue: Should you pay employees for time spent putting on and taking off work clothes?
Benefit: Recent court case limits your obligations under so-called “donning and doffing” laws …

New overtime rules facing delays

09/01/2003
Don’t expect the Labor Department’s proposal to revamp the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime provisions to take effect anytime soon. Labor received thousands of comments on the rules, proposed in March …

Do interns have to be paid?

09/01/2003

Q. We plan on hiring a college intern this year. Do we have to pay that person? —L.M., New York

You can require mandatory overtime

09/01/2003

Q. A new employee has just informed his supervisor that he can’t work any overtime. Can we legally fire this person? —G.M., Virginia

Paying for travel time: Know the rules of the road

09/01/2003
Issue: Paying nonexempt workers for travel time can be tricky, especially if it involves several work sites or overnight travel.
Risk: Thousands of dollars, or more, in back pay …

Don’t change benefits without union’s knowledge.

08/01/2003
For more than 30 years, a company sponsored blood donation drives twice a year. Employees could participate during paid work time. But when the com-pany changed its policy, …

Pay for ‘donning, doffing’ time but not for time spent waiting

08/01/2003
As shown by a few recent high-profile court cases, employees should be paid for time spent at the workplace putting on and taking off required work clothes and equipment …

Big settlement over dress code will spark scrutiny of uniform law

08/01/2003
Avoid dress-code rules that have no clear business reason or health and safety reason, plus check with your state labor department to see if your state has a pay-for-uniform …

Different vacation policies are legal if done fairly

08/01/2003

Q. We are rewriting our vacation pay policy. Currently, we have two categories of hourly employees. Can we offer 10 vacation days after two years to some employees and five days for the same period to other employees? Can we offer different benefits to salaried and hourly employees? —S.P., Washington

Examine entire contractor link, not just uniforms

08/01/2003

Q. Can our company require an independent contractor to wear a specific uniform? And can we stipulate that the contractor buy the uniform through us? —A.C., California