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Wages & Hours

Greater penalties for unequal pay these days?

04/19/2012
Q. Has the penalty for employer violations of the Illinois Equal Pay Act recently increased?

Never knew about unauthorized OT? You’re not liable under FLSA

04/19/2012

Every HR pro knows employers must pay overtime if an em­­ployee works more than 40 hours per week. But does an employer have to pay overtime if it doesn’t know or have reason to know that the employee worked overtime hours? No, according to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Be prepared to explain why women earn less than men doing the same work

04/19/2012
If you pay women and men different rates for the doing the same work, you had better have a good reason—one that can stand up in court. Otherwise, you’ll probably wind up on the losing end of an Equal Pay Act (EPA) lawsuit.

As union eyes our workforce, what should we do about its request for pay information?

04/12/2012
Q. I run a nonunion construction contracting company. We recently received a letter from a union stating that they believe we are paying substandard wages and benefits. The letter asked us to provide any information we might have to show that they are wrong and that we are paying area standard compensation to our people. Does the union have a right to this information?

Former ‘Charlie Rose’ intern seeks class-action lawsuit

04/03/2012
Public television shows often operate on a shoestring. According to Lucy Bickerton, the PBS “Charlie Rose” interview show was so cheap, it used interns like her to fill in for actual employees.

Batali’s employees rake in millions in belated tip income

04/03/2012
Manhattan celebrity chef Mario Batali has agreed to a $5.25 million settlement with waiters, bartenders, busboys and other floor staff at several of his restaurants.

No matter how many clients, temps must still get OT pay

03/30/2012
Dallas-based staffing agency Temp Team has agreed to settle FLSA violations un­­covered during a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigation. The $244,104 settlement will be split among 252 current and former employees.

Contract worker EPA claims have long shelf lives

03/29/2012

You probably think that once a contract employee’s contract expires, that’s the end of the matter. You don’t renew the contract and she moves on. That may not be the case. She can still sue over Equal Pay Act claims for at least two years after her last check.

Equal pay? Not if jobs aren’t really equal

03/23/2012
The Equal Pay Act says that men and women who perform jobs requiring equal skill, effort and responsibility should be paid the same. But that doesn’t mean everyone with the same title or similar job responsibilities falls into the same pay category.

After Wal-Mart, Illinois court & 7th Circuit uphold class certification

03/22/2012
Class-action litigation returned to the spotlight with last year’s Supreme Court decision in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes. In Wal-Mart v. Dukes, the Supreme Court refused to certify what would have been the largest-ever employment class action against a private employer. Now the 7th Circuit has weighed in.