FLSA

Federal court clarifies ‘Protected activity’ under the FLSA

08/04/2008

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has issued an important ruling in a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case. It marks the first time the court has defined exactly what the FLSA means when it refers to filing a wage-and-hour “complaint.” The court’s decision is important because it means employers that punish employees who file complaints may be liable for retaliation …

Volunteer services and FLSA compliance

08/04/2008

Q. We are a for-profit health care facility licensed by the state of Texas. Can we use volunteers to perform services at our facility without compensation? For example, the wife of one of our clients wants to volunteer her services in exchange for us waiving the daily-use fee we charge her husband. Are these volunteer services exempt from the wage-and-hour requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)? …

Can we switch a salaried employee to hourly to deal with pregnancy-related absences?

08/01/2008

Q. Our office manager, who is pregnant, has begun coming in late two or three times a week due to morning sickness. Because she is a salaried employee, we know that we cannot deduct from her wages for partial-day absences. Can we change her position to one that is paid on an hourly basis until she returns from her maternity leave? …

Can we refuse to pay employees who work unauthorized overtime hours?

08/01/2008

Q. Our policy prohibits employees from working overtime without specific written authorization from their supervisor. Our policy manual provides that employees will not be compensated for overtime hours worked unless they comply with this policy. Can we legally refuse to pay our employees for unauthorized overtime? …

Warn managers about personal liability

07/25/2008

One way to get the attention of your managers and supervisors is to warn them that they may be personally liable for breaking some state or federal laws. For example, because the definition of “employer” in the FMLA and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is quite broad, some supervisors and managers have been held personally responsible. And the same is true for some job-related injuries. …

OK to refuse to pay unauthorized overtime?

07/25/2008

Q. We have a company policy forbidding unauthorized overtime in a workweek. May I refuse to pay overtime to an employee who works overtime without authorization? …

Exempt employees and negative leave balances

07/24/2008

Q. I know I must pay exempt employees their full salaries even if they have no accrued benefits in their leave plans and their accounts have negative balances. But can I keep negative balance tallies and then subtract the negative balances as the employees earn more leave? …

Gas pains: Compressed workweek can help workers manage high prices

07/22/2008

Employees across the country are finding their budgets stretched by rising gas prices, and that means employers are feeling pressured by the pump, too. Companies are struggling to find ways to help workers deal with high prices without raising pay. One of the most popular ways employers are dealing with the problem is to implement a compressed workweek …

Holiday premium isn’t the basis for overtime calculation

07/18/2008

Good news for California employers that pay their employees time-and-a-half for holiday work: You don’t have to cough up additional pay for overtime hours worked on a holiday …

Must you pay hourly staff for BlackBerry time?

07/17/2008

The answer isn’t clear, as ABC News recently learned. The media company said nonexempt writers wouldn’t be paid for those minutes spent checking their office-issued BlackBerry devices after regular work hours. But their union objected …