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FLSA

Employ teens? Review new list
of ‘too dangerous’ positions

02/01/2005
The U.S. Labor Department unveiled new limitations on the type of responsibilities you can hand teen employees in certain industries. The new regulations, which take effect Feb. 14, revise child-labor rules …

Encourage staff volunteerism, but don’t link it to pay, promotion

02/01/2005
Heads up: More employers are heaping legal trouble on themselves by tracking employees’ volunteerism ef-forts and, in some cases, using that information (either directly or indirectly) as a prerequisite for promotions …

Travel Time Is ‘Work Time’ if It Cuts Across Workday

02/01/2005

Q. We hired a new branch manager in a one-person office in another town. Because she earns $19,240 a year, she doesn’t meet the new annual threshold of $23,660 for exempt status, correct? Several times a year, she escorts trips involving overnight stays. While she’s out, she forwards her calls to the host office and closes her doors. How do we compensate her? Am I right that she has to be considered "hourly"? And how do we compensate for the overnight and travel time? —K.H., Kansas

Beware time clock ’rounding’ errors; push for an upgrade

02/01/2005
Issue: The legal and financial hazards of an improperly programmed time clock.
Risk: Thousands in back pay and government penalties, in addition to unwanted publicity.
Action: Audit your timekeeping …

Employ teens? See new list of ‘too dangerous’ jobs

02/01/2005
The U.S. Labor Department unveiled new limits on the type of responsibilities you can give teen employees in certain industries. The key changes, which take effect Feb. 14: new limits on …

Beware of costly time-clock ’rounding’

01/01/2005
If your organization uses a time clock, you probably haven’t thought about whether it’s programmed accurately. But a seemingly small hiccup in “rounding” hourly employees’ work time could cost big bucks. …

Payroll records: What to track (and for how long)

01/01/2005

Violating Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) timekeeping rules can be a costly error, as the hospital in one case discovered. The FLSA requires employers to keep at least the following …

No need to accommodate those who want to work overtime

01/01/2005
You’re required to reasonably accommodate employees when their religious practices conflict with their job requirements. But what if an employee asks for an accommodation just so he can work overtime? Must …

Don’t offer comp time to nonexempt employees

01/01/2005

Q. Can we offer our nonexempt employees comp time instead of overtime pay during a pay period? If we can, do we have to offer it at one and a half times, just like overtime is paid? For example, if an employee works one hour of overtime, do we have to give him one and a half hours of comp time? —J.C., Ohio

Sick-leave ‘buyback’ compensation should count toward overtime tally

12/01/2004
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), you must pay employees time-and-a-half overtime pay based on the workers’ “regular rate of pay.” That regular rate includes the person’s salary or wages, …