As a working mom, I am lucky to have a husband who is a stay-at-home parent. Rarely do I have to worry about being late to work because I have to drop my child off at school, or leaving work early to take my child to an after-school activity or doctor’s appointment. However, many of
Can We Mandate Direct Deposit?
Q. We would like to require employees to accept pay via direct deposit. Is this permitted?
A. Direct deposit is an increasingly common method of paying employees, with numerous advantages for employees (fewer trips to the bank, no worry about losing a check) and employers (reduced cost and administrative hassle).
The Fair Labor Standards Act
Family Dollar Settles Store Manager Overtime Claim
On September 12, 2012, Family Dollar announced that it will pay up to $14 million to settle a class action in the Southern District of New York. Similar to other class actions filed against Family Dollar over the years, New York store managers claimed that the Company failed to pay them overtime. Although the agreement
Court Rejects Challenge to DOL’s Interpretation That Mortgage Loan Officers are Non-exempt
I wanted to give our readers a quick update on the status of mortgage loan officers. In Mortgage Bankers Ass’n v. Solis, a federal district court in Washington D.C. recently rejected a challenge to the March 2010 DOL administrator’s interpretation that mortgage loan officers do not generally meet the administrative exemption under the FLSA. As
Can Employees Agree to Be Exempt? [Wage & Hour FAQs]
Q. Our employees consider themselves “professionals” and don’t want to be treated as hourly workers. If our employees agree to it, can we still treat them as “exempt” even if they don’t meet all of the requirements under the FLSA or state law?
A. In a word, no. This question comes up more often than you might think. In some cases, particular industries have developed a practice of treating certain categories of employees as “salaried” and assuming that they are exempt. In others, employees would simply rather be “salaried” or “exempt” because this suggests a higher status than an “hourly” position, or because they prefer not to have to track their time.
Unfortunately for employers, an employee’s choice generally had nothing to do with whether or not the employee can legitimately be classified as “exempt” from overtime requirements under state and federal law. With very few exceptions, the rights provided by the Fair Labor Standards Act and its state equivalents can’t be waived or modified by an agreement with the employee.
So how can employers manage employee expectations without running afoul of the law? Continue Reading Can Employees Agree to Be Exempt? [Wage & Hour FAQs]
Pharmaceutical Sales Representatives Found to be Exempt by Seventh Circuit
The Seventh Circuit recently weighed in on whether pharmaceutical sales representatives are exempt under the FLSA in Susan Schaeffer-LaRose v. Eli Lilly & Company. In this consolidated case, the Seventh Circuit focused on the administrative exemption in determining that the sales representatives were exempt. Because the Court found that the sales representatives met the
More Store Managers Found to Meet Executive Exemption
On April 3, 2012, a federal district court in South Carolina determined that two Dollar General store managers met the executive exemption from overtime pay under the FLSA. Gooden v. Dolgencorp and Thomas v. Dolgencorp. Granting summary judgment to Dolgencorp, the court held that Gooden’s and Thomas’s primary duties were managerial in nature based
“Right to Know” Rule Not Likely in 2012
For roughly the last two years, the U.S. Department of Labor has been contemplating (some would say “threatening”) revisions to the recordkeeping regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act that would require an employer who classifies an employee as exempt to prepare a written justification of the basis for the exemption. This document would have
What Do You Mean the Job May No Longer Be Considered Exempt?
My last blog entry on travel time only touched on one issue that may arise as we see more employees being asked to take on additional responsibilities and assignments in lieu of hiring new personnel. Indeed, consolidation of jobs or responsibilities can lead to a number of other potential wage and hour issues that can
Court: Cable Installers Employees, Not Independent Contractors
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about an initiative by the U.S. Department of Labor, IRS and various state agencies to launch a coordinated crack-down on employers who misclassify employees as independent contractors. Recently, a U.S. District Court in Ohio issued a ruling that nicely illustrates the problem of misclassifcation and the potential liabilities