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Q&A

Commissions, overtime and the Fair Labor Standards Act

12/01/2007

Q. We have a number of employees who are paid on a commission basis. Are they exempt from overtime under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act? …

Disciplining tardy, exempt employees

12/01/2007

Q. We have an exempt employee who is consistently late a few times a week, arriving anywhere from a few minutes to a couple of hours late. Can we discipline him for being consistently late? In addition, can we require him to work at set times—for example from 9 am to 5 pm? …

Can an employee who quits receive unemployment compensation?

12/01/2007

Q. We told an employee we probably would be replacing him within the next month. He quit and filed for unemployment. Under what circumstances do we have to pay unemployment? …

Getting started on FMLA leave processes

12/01/2007

Q. I have an employee who is scheduled for surgery and will be going on FMLA leave. What forms will I need? There is a possibility that he will not return after the 12 weeks. How long will we be required to hold his position for him? …

Salaried employees running out of leave

12/01/2007

Q. If a salaried employee has used up all vacation and sick time, yet wants to take more vacation or calls in sick, can we make deductions from his pay? If not, what can we do? We don’t want the employees getting out of hand …

Going paperless: Can personnel records be electronic?

12/01/2007

Q. We’re drowning in paper and would like to go paperless. Can we create strictly electronic personnel and payroll records? — T.P., Indiana …

Leap-Year compensation: cutting the check

12/01/2007

Q. I am new to HR and our payroll department just told me they’re lowering salaried employees’ pay next year to offset the additional pay period caused by the leap year. They said salaried employees are paid based on a yearly amount, and we normally have 26 pay periods but we will have 27 in 2008. My initial thought is, “This is not going to go over well.” — J.S., Pennsylvania …

Should you buy insurance for employees’ cars?

12/01/2007

Q. We often send employees on assignments to other locations and those employees drive their own vehicles. Should we provide liability insurance on our employees’ vehicles in case of an accident? — D.R., New York …

Can we dock pay if worker exceeds sick-Leave limit?

12/01/2007

Q. A salaried employee used all his vacation and sick time. He’s allowed 21 days and so far has used 22 this year. He wants to take more vacation in December and is always sick (so he’ll probably be out more). Can I deduct his pay if he’s out more? Or can I take days from next year? — R.E., Pennsylvania …

Putting a cap on vacation time accrual

12/01/2007

Q. Our company’s vacation policy provides that once an employee earns 240 hours (or 30 days) of vacation, no additional vacation may be accrued until the balance falls below that level. Is this legal? …