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FLSA

DOL weighs in: Pay for participating in wellness activities?

10/09/2018
More and more employers are providing various wellness incentives as part of their medical insurance plans to promote healthier lifestyles and choices. A new opinion letter addressed whether employees should be paid when they participate in certain activities.

Payroll deductions create overtime violations for Conn’s

10/09/2018
Conn’s Appliances, based in The Woodlands, Texas, learned the hard way that payroll deductions often have unintended consequences.

Beware assigning nonexempt tasks to exempt employees

10/09/2018
Do you require exempt employees to pitch in and perform nonexempt tasks when the need arises? If those tasks are clearly outside their normal duties, this may net you an unpaid overtime claim.

It’s your responsibility to keep accurate time records

10/09/2018
Ensure that the method you use to track hours and calculate overtime is easily defensible and accurate. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, it is your responsibility to make sure all time is accounted for.

Carefully consider duties and time spent performing them when classifying employees

10/03/2018
Exempt employees don’t qualify for overtime, of course. That makes it tempting to classify as many positions as possible as exempt. But if you get that wrong, you could lose big in court.

Missed payrolls add up to FLSA violations in Riverside, Calif.

10/03/2018
A U.S. Department of Labor investigation found that Carnegie Schools Riverside, a private Christian school, failed to make several payrolls to teachers, substitute teachers, coaches, administrative aides and cafeteria workers.

Under MFLSA, double damages mandatory

09/25/2018
Under the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act, employers found to have underpaid workers by not paying the state minimum wage or by not calculating overtime correctly must pay workers what they are owed. The MFLSA also provides for a penalty of doubling the amount owed.

Rely on Motor Carrier Act to exempt drivers? Show you’re engaged in interstate commerce

09/13/2018
Some workers are covered by the Motor Carrier Act exemption, which essentially says that workers involved in trucking that crosses state lines don’t have to be paid overtime. But recent court decisions have narrowed that MCA exemption, requiring employers to clearly prove they are engaged in interstate trucking.

Lunch break pay dispute costs Lubbock, Texas hospital $200K

09/13/2018
University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, has agreed to pay 197 emergency room employees $199,175 to settle charges it deducted 30 minutes of paid time from each employee’s time card whether the employee took lunch or not.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court to weigh fluctuating workweek OT method

08/31/2018
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that could affect how employers pay overtime to nonexempt salaried employees in the Commonwealth. At issue is whether employers may use the fluctuating workweek option allowed under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.