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FLSA

DOL builds another OT case against construction firm

03/25/2013
PCM Construction Services has settled DOL charges that it cheated employees out of overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. The problem: PCM paid nonexempt employees a flat salary regardless of how many hours they put in.

Golf firm finds hazard of missing paydays

03/25/2013
The DOL has ordered Charlotte’s Carolina Trail Golf Part­­ners to immediately tee up $758,465 in back wages for 347 workers at seven courses who recently went several weeks without getting paid.

Federal sequester raises issues for exempt employees

03/14/2013
Under the federal sequester, a federal contractor may be forced to rejigger its workforce through reduced hours or furloughs. The problem: Under the FLSA, exempts must receive a full week’s pay if they do any work during the week. You have three options.

What are wage-and-hour implications of tracking time for telecommuters?

03/07/2013

Q. We recently started permitting two of our employees to telecommute on certain days of the week. We are concerned with tracking these employees’ hours. What are the wage-and-hour concerns we should be aware of for telecommuting employees?

When equipment must start up, when does work begin?

03/07/2013
Q. When our employees come in to work, they spend part of their time getting their equipment running. Do we need to compensate them for that time?

Eye care company sees the error of its pay ways

03/07/2013
Fort Worth-based Alcon Laboratories has agreed to pay $199,443 in back wages to 342 assemblers, material handlers and production technicians at its Houston facility.

Employee won’t stop working off the clock? Don’t dock his pay; fire for misconduct

03/04/2013
Make sure managers know they can’t turn a blind eye to unpaid work by hourly employees. What can employers do? Don’t dock their pay. Instead, warn them—and then discipline them.

Yes, you can fire for working off the clock

02/20/2013

Some employees refuse to follow rules prohibiting off-the-clock work. Some—insisting they can’t complete their work any other way—may clock out and then return to work. That puts employers at risk for wage-and-hour lawsuits. You don’t have to put up with it.

Long Island restaurants can’t duck fair pay

02/07/2013
A chain of three Long Island Asian restaurants will pay more than $1 million in back wages and penalties to 255 current and former employees who were underpaid.

Could nonexempts’ use of smartphones cause wage-and-hour liability?

02/01/2013
Hourly employees’ use of smartphones (as well as online email access from remote locations) has boosted worker productivity. However, it has also substantially increased the risk of off-the-clock-work violations.