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FLSA

Presidential hopefuls picket with advocates for $15 minimum wage

06/18/2019
The Fight for $15 advocacy group that is pushing to raise the minimum wage nationwide picked up some notable support June 15.

Conversations among co-workers can be enough to certify class-action lawsuit

06/13/2019
When an employee claims she wasn’t paid properly under the Fair Labor Standards Act, she can ask the court to represent all other similarly situated workers in a potentially costly class-action suit. It doesn’t take much more than a few casual conversations with co-workers for a single plaintiff to move a class-action lawsuit forward.

HCE exemption hard for worker to challenge

06/13/2019
Employees who earn at least $100,000 per year to perform office work and at least one duty required under the Fair Labor Standards Act’s administrative, executive or professional classifications may be considered Highly Compensated Employees who are exempt from the law’s overtime requirements. Few workers who challenge an HCE classification win.

When exempt ‘managers’ do all work, expect lawsuits

06/13/2019
When retail managers you classify as exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime provisions end up doing the bulk of the work in the store, you may have a misclassification problem.

$22,000: Cost of failing to provide space to pump milk

06/10/2019
The Affordable Care Act amended the Fair Labor Standards Act to require employers to provide nursing mothers a clean, private place (that is not a restroom) to express milk. Allegiance Behavioral Health Center, located in Plainview, Texas, apparently didn’t understand that.

Beware wage-and-hour lawsuits that might suddenly turn into class actions

06/10/2019
Here’s another reason to make sure you are carefully following the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime rules: Just one disgruntled and allegedly underpaid employee can file a class-action lawsuit and get the court to authorize contacting all other similarly situated workers to join in as plaintiffs.

Before signing settlement, consider other filings

06/06/2019
Sometimes, an employee files several discrimination complaints about incidents that are allegedly related. If you’re thinking about settling one complaint, be aware that other, related claims may remain outstanding.

DOL, NLRB decide: Gig workers are contractors

05/21/2019
Two recent federal government decisions make it clear: Gig economy workers such as Uber drivers and online app-enabled repair persons face an uphill battle in the fight to be recognized as employees and gain all the rights employees enjoy.

Provide breaks for nursing mothers: DOL punishing violators of ACA rule

05/14/2019
The Affordable Care Act requires employers to provide milk-expression breaks for new mothers and a private place that is not a bathroom. The U.S. Department of Labor is going after employers that don’t comply.

DOL says gig economy workers are independent contractors

05/02/2019
A new Department of Labor opinion letter delivers a big win for business, stating that workers who provide services to customers of a gig economy company are independent contractors, not employees.