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Wages & Hours

U.S. DOL launches probe of Southland garment industry

10/22/2012

The DOL’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has begun a multiyear enforcement initiative that could result in sanctions against Los Angeles and Orange County employers in the garment industry. According to the WHD, the garment industry consistently violates federal wage-and-hour laws.

‘Flex’ benefits business, not just employees

10/16/2012
Flex is becoming as coveted by businesses as it is by employees. Organizations, it seems, need as much flexibility when it comes to staffing as employees do when it comes to balancing work with personal commitments. Here are seven ways your organi­zation can benefit as much as its employees do from offering time-and-place flexibility.

Ohio sushi chefs to slice up at least $100K in back pay

10/09/2012
Sushi Rock restaurants failed to ensure tipped employees made at least minimum wage, according to the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division. Now the chain must pay at least $100,000 in back pay, to be split among 54 employees.

How should we handle pay while our employee is serving jury duty?

10/05/2012
Q. One of our employees received a jury duty summons. What are our obligations towards the employee in terms of pay and leave?

Arlington firm owes $53K in overtime wages

10/05/2012
Arlington-based Espitia Cleaning Inc. agreed to pay $53,095 in back wages to 130 current and former janitors following a U.S. Department of Labor investigation.

Ledbetter law doesn’t apply to state pay claims

10/05/2012
Under the federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, employees who believe their paychecks reflect a discriminatory pay decision made years or even decades ago can still sue. But that principle doesn’t apply if an employee pursues a state pay discrimination claim under the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act.

Health care firm faces possible FLSA class action

10/02/2012
A lawsuit against home health care and hospice provider Amedisys seeks national class action status and challenges the way the company pays its visiting nurses and home health care aides. The company operates in 41 states, including North Carolina.

Is there an hourly threshold employees must pass to earn paid holidays?

09/26/2012

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?

New law allows for 8/80 health care workweek

09/26/2012
A new law amends the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Law to bring it into line with the FLSA, which requires health care employers to pay overtime only if employees work more than eight hours in a day or 80 hours in a 14-day period.

Is it legal for us to restrict when employees may take small amounts of vacation time?

09/21/2012

Q. We recently needed to cut back on some of our employees’ shifts, meaning that some of them now work less than 40 hours per week. In order to bring their hours up to 40, these workers have been filling in their time sheets with varying amounts of their earned vacation. Are we permitted to restrict when our employees may use their earned vacation?