FLSA

New overtime rules could change duties tests in addition to salary level

03/24/2023

For over a year, the Department of Labor has been teasing the imminent release of new proposed rules raising the white-collar salary threshold that makes exempt employees eligible for overtime pay. Originally scheduled to drop in spring 2022, the update is now penciled in for May.

Extra ‘volunteer’ work can’t be paid in chicken

03/20/2023

Fast food restaurants trying to hire workers sometimes tout “free food” as an employee benefit. That doesn’t turn meal vouchers into legal tender. That’s what the Department of Labor decided when it fined a Chik-Fil-A franchise following a recent investigation.

Momentum building at state level to turn gig workers into employees

03/16/2023

New York is taking steps to join California in reclassifying gig workers as employees. Legislation currently in committee in the New York State Senate, S. 2052, looks to “reclassify more workers as employees rather than independent contractors in order for them to receive benefits such as healthcare and retirement.”

Feds announce major crackdown on child labor

03/03/2023

The U.S. Department of Labor and the Department of Health and Human Services on Feb. 27 announced a new interagency effort to combat child labor and exploitation. One of the primary tactics they will use: strict enforcement of employer compliance with the rules for completing I-9 forms.

Florida man: DOL sets sights on Sunshine State employers

02/21/2023

Feb. 16 was a bad day for Florida employers that recently ran afoul of the Department of Labor. On just that one day, the DOL announced fines and recoveries worth almost $400,000.

Consider single process for accommodations

02/16/2023

Now might be the right time to standardize your processes for handling reasonable accommodations. Two new laws requiring accommodations just went on the books.

DOL: Fresh guidance on remote worker rights, FMLA vs. ADA

02/10/2023

The Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division on Feb. 9 issued two new guidance documents affecting employers with remote workers and FMLA-eligible employees who must work reduced schedules to manage their serious health conditions.

DOL never forgets: Slaps millions in penalties on repeat wage offender

02/03/2023

A commercial painting contractor in Las Vegas must have thought federal investigators would forget about his history of stiffing employees. He was wrong.

Companies cut employees, hire contractors instead

01/31/2023

Layoffs are in the news again, but research conducted by ResumeBuilder.com in January suggests some job cuts aren’t a response to lower consumer demand in a sluggish economy, but old-fashioned cost-cutting instead.

$5.6 million mistake: Misclassifying employees as contractors doesn’t save money

01/27/2023

Some employers look for almost any excuse to treat workers as independent contractors instead of employees. The reason is usually simple: Contractors generally cost less than employees. However, those savings can be wiped out in a flash if the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division determines those contractors should really have been classified as employees all along.