• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Wages & Hours

When to Pay for Rest Breaks

08/01/2002

Q. What’s the deal on paying workers for rest breaks? —J.S., California

Use new weapon to fight class-action wage suits

07/01/2002
It’s no secret that wage-and-hour class action lawsuits, in which mobs of employees sue for unpaid overtime, have skyrocketed. They can be enormously expensive. But a California appeals court ruling gives …

New wage and hour threat: ‘Donning and doffing’ crackdown

07/01/2002
The government is going after em-ployers that don’t pay workers for time spent putting on and taking off required work clothes and protective gear. In one of the largest settlements …

Rules of the road: Know when to pay for travel time

07/01/2002
Employers know they don’t have to pay Joe Worker for his typical commute into the office. But pay-for-travel questions …

Teen work: Heed strict limits on hours, conditions

07/01/2002
THE LAW. Teens are a great source of labor, especially during the summer. But the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets strict limits on the hours they can work and …

Eligibility for Holiday Pay Is Your Call

07/01/2002

Q. Is there a law that states the number of hours necessary to be considered full time for being eligible for paid holidays? Our handbook says an employee who works fewer than 40 hours a week is considered part time. An employee who works 34 hours a week wonders if he should be eligible for paid holidays. Our handbook says he’s not. Is that OK? —B.D., Michigan

Avoid Two-Tier Benefit Policy

07/01/2002

Q. We offer all employees two weeks’ paid vacation a year. If an employee chooses a 100-percent, full-commission pay structure, how should we set her pay for vacation? The employee wants to take her annual pay divided by 52 weeks, but we feel that’s unfair to the employees who are on salary plus commission, because their vacation pay is based on their base salary divided by 52 weeks. Is there a correct and legal way to figure this? —R.D., Florida

Be Cautious in Requiring Payment From ‘Short’ Cashier

07/01/2002

Q. Management wants to institute a policy that requires cashiers whose registers are short at night’s end to replace the disputed amount out of their own pockets. Does this violate the law? —B.B., New York

Overtime pay doesn’t have to apply to after-hours job training

06/01/2002
Four campus police officers were required to be certified as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) within one year of being hired as probationary police officers. Most of the required classes occurred outside …

Dual-Method Time Sheets OK

06/01/2002

Q. Our nonsupervisory, hourly employees punch in using a time clock. Our supervisors write timecards. Is this dual method acceptable or could it lead to legal trouble? —A.N., New Hampshire