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FLSA

Tech firm learns the hard way: Don’t switch employees to exempt once they hit a pay threshold

09/01/2007

Aerospace contractor Ball Corp. agreed to pay out almost $1 million to 900 employees to settle a U.S. Labor Department complaint. The problem: The company switched top-tier hourly workers to exempt status once employees reached the top of the hourly pay scale. They were also required to work through lunch without pay …

When to pay for travel time in company car

09/01/2007

Q. We provide certain hourly employees with a vehicle to drive to and from job sites. Employees are required to pick up the vehicle at our offices by 6 am. After working at various job sites, they’re required to bring the vehicle back to the office at day’s end. Should the drive time from the final job site back to the office be compensated? —M.R., Arizona …

How to deal with unauthorized overtime

09/01/2007

Q. We have a “no overtime without approval” policy. If employees put down overtime on their time sheets, do we have to pay it if the extra time isn’t approved? —A.W., Oregon …

You Don’t Have to Pay Employees for ‘Uncontrolled’ On-Call Time

09/01/2007

Under California law, you don’t have to pay employees for on-call time unless you “control” how they spend that time. If you structure their responsibilities properly, you don’t have to pay them for every hour they’re on call. You can even pay them a flat fee for their on-call shifts. The key is the amount of freedom you give the employees to choose how they spend their time while waiting for your call. The more time they can spend on personal activities, the better …

Prompt wage payment required—Including actually having money in the bank

09/01/2007

Employers must pay their employees on payday—and make sure the money is in the bank. Otherwise, they risk liability for double the amount due as liquidated damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act …

Judge reverses decision after Labor Dept. issues opinion letter

09/01/2007

A federal judge has overturned his earlier decision in a Fair Labor Standards Act case involving several women who had been hired to sell houses in a new subdivision. The women claimed Brayson Homes owed them overtime and minimum wages …

Ball Aerospace picks up $593,092 lunch tab for nonexempt employees

09/01/2007

Ball Aerospace and Technologies will pay $976,327 to 904 employees in Colorado, New Mexico, Ohio, Georgia and the District of Columbia for unpaid wages. Ball, a Broomfield, CO-based aerospace defense contractor, operates a facility in the city of Warner Robins supporting Robins Air Force Base …

Georgia ‘Donning and doffing’ case headed to high court?

09/01/2007

You may remember that the U.S. Supreme Court decided a donning and doffing case about a year ago. That might have been the end of the matter. But nothing is simple when it comes to employment law. Recently, a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that workers cannot demand pay for time spent donning and doffing their uniforms in most circumstances …

Travel time normally not payable

09/01/2007

Q. Do I have to pay my employees for travel time? …

It’s up to employers to prove they’re acting in good faith

09/01/2007

You’ve no doubt heard the adage that ignorance of the law is no excuse. But what you may not know is that it’s up to employers to prove they took concrete steps to overcome that ignorance if the law in question is the Fair Labor Standards Act …