Tag Archives: DOL

The Department of Labor’s Proposed PAID Program: An Invitation to Turn Yourself In or to Turn Yourself Inside Out?

Ver la versión en español aquí Last week, the U.S. Wage and Hour Division (“WHD”) announced that it will soon offer employers the chance to self-report to the WHD and potentially resolve minimum wage and overtime violations. This opportunity will be offered under the new WHD Payroll Audit Independent Determination (“PAID”) program. The employment law … Continue Reading

Tax Reform: Confidential Sexual Harassment Settlements Come With a Price

Ver la versión en español aquí The recently passed tax act promises to have wide ranging impacts on businesses which go beyond the accounting department. There have been attempts by other agencies such as the SEC, EEOC, DOL and NLRB to limit the confidentiality of settlements.  The new tax act follows suit by including a provision … Continue Reading

Restaurants and Hotels: Are We Reaching a “Tipping” Point on Tips?

Ver la versión en español aquí Florida and federal law allow restaurants and hotels to pay tipped employees minimum wage, less a credit of $3.02 per hour against tips received. Tips can be pooled and then redistributed to those who are in traditionally tipped positions.  However, if an employer wrongly allows non-tipped employees to share … Continue Reading

Retirement Plan Hurricane Relief for Affected Participants

Ver la versión en español aquí As we all know, Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria severely impacted parts of Texas, the southeastern United States and Puerto Rico causing billions of dollars of damage. To help victims recover, Congress, the IRS, and the Department of Labor have issued special retirement plan relief for employers and participants … Continue Reading

Spoiler Alert: Court Plunges Dagger in Heart of Obama-Era Overtime Regs, Setting Stage for Season II Fireworks

Ver la versión en español aquí Wow, this has been one crazy roller coaster ride. Season 1 of this overtime soap opera kicked-off with President Obama directing the Secretary of Labor to “modernize and streamline” the “white collar” FLSA exemptions. In May 2016, the DOL published revised regulations that increased the exempt salary threshold from … Continue Reading

“Like” or “Dislike” – Did Zuckerberg Overlook Facebook’s Paternity Leave Policy?

Ver la versión en español aquí More than 3 years ago, I blogged about the unjustified criticism received by then-New York Mets (and now Washington Nationals) baseball player Daniel Murphy when he missed 2 baseball games for the birth of his child. That criticism – much of it voiced by other athletes and sports commentators … Continue Reading

DOL Does a “Do Over” on Overtime Regs and White Collar Exemptions

Ver la versión en español aquí On November 22, 2016, many of you breathed a (big) sigh of relief. Why? Because a Texas federal judge issued a nationwide temporary injunction precluding the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) 2016 overtime regulations from going into effect on December 1, 2016. These regulations would have significantly increased the … Continue Reading

Top Takeaways from Our 27th Annual Labor & Employment Law Seminar

Ver la versión en español aquí Another successful seminar in the books! Thank you to the nearly 400 attendees who came from near and far. We hope you were able to get a “glimpse into the future” of Labor & Employment law. Check out our Facebook album with photos from the event to see if you can spot yourself or your … Continue Reading

Another Attempt to Pass Private Sector Comp-Time Legislation

Ver la versión en español aquí As the fate of the Department of Labor’s revised overtime regulations remains in limbo as a result of a nationwide injunction (currently on appeal) issued in November 2016, Congress now has chimed-in on wage and hour issues potentially impacting non-exempt employees.  This week, the House of Representatives passed The … Continue Reading

Google’s Pay Policy: Good? Or Too Good to Be True?

techVer la versión en español aquí In January, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) brought suit in a San Francisco administrative court against Google, Inc. to require Google, as a federal contractor, to allow the government to inspect Google’s pay records.  While the DOL was demanding various documents regarding employees’ compensation history for compliance purposes, it was clear the underlying reason was … Continue Reading

What’s in YOUR COBRA Notice? Insufficiencies Could Drain Your Wallet

Ver la versión en español aquí SunTrust Banks learned an expensive lesson about COBRA compliance recently. It was sued for failure to send proper COBRA election notices after employees terminated employment. SunTrust’s agent for COBRA notice purposes, Xerox HR Solutions, actually sent timely COBRA notices to the former employees.  But two former employees/plaintiffs claimed that … Continue Reading

New DOL Overtime Regulations on Hold – Now What????

Late yesterday, a Texas federal Judge issued a nationwide temporary injunction halting the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) new overtime regulations, which were set to significantly increase the minimum salary required for the executive, administrative and professional overtime exemptions (known as the white collar exemptions). This unexpected ruling prevents the DOL from implementing the new regulations, … Continue Reading

Non-Compete Agreements Under Fire by the White House?

Ver la versión en español aquí Not really. On October 25, 2016, the White House issued a call to action urging states to reform their non-compete laws.  The call to action acknowledges that non-compete agreements are appropriate in certain circumstances, (for example, to protect trade secrets), but expressed the view that employers are, in many instances, … Continue Reading

For Immediate Posting in Your Workplace: Updated Minimum Wage and Polygraph Posters

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently published two updated workplace posters: Federal Minimum Wage poster, and Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA) poster. (Note: Federal, state or local governments are exempt from the EPPA so no poster is required for these employers) The posters have been visually redesigned and includes a QR Code, which when … Continue Reading

Top Takeaways from Our 26th Annual Labor & Employment Law Seminar

Ver la versión en español aquí With over 400 attendees from more than 200 employers, our 26th Annual Labor & Employment Law Seminar was a huge success! Thank you for allowing us to keep you “on Track”. For the first time this year, following our morning sessions, attendees were able to choose from our “high-speed” track designed for … Continue Reading

New Overtime Rule Doubling Minimum Salary Requirement Effective December 1

Ver la versión en español aquí Well, finally. This morning, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued its final rule, about two years and two months after President Obama directed the Department to update, streamline and modernize overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The Department estimates that the compensation of more than four … Continue Reading

My Top Ten Ways to Avoid Being Sued in 2016

I love this time of year. For some magical reason, everyone’s mood changes and smiles appear. Perhaps it’s their pending vacation or the chance to spend quality time with friends and family. So, in the spirit of the holidays, here is my gift to all our readers.   Drum rolls please . . .  TEN WAYS TO AVOID GETTING … Continue Reading

Don’t Fall Asleep Just Yet… A “New Test” to Decide When Interns Should be Paid

The steady stream of cases filed by unpaid interns claiming to be owed minimum wage and overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act remains on the rise after highly publicized court decisions and settlements. However, courts continue to struggle with how to determine if and when an intern should be paid for work under … Continue Reading

DOL’s Proposal Will Require More “White Collar” Employees to Be Paid Overtime

Ver la versión en español aquí The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently proposed substantial changes to the salary amounts for the FLSA’s white collar exemptions. This is the first proposed change since 2004. The DOL took this action in response to a March 2014 directive from President Obama to “modernize and streamline” the regulations … Continue Reading

Supreme Court’s Same-Sex Marriage Ruling: Time to Update Your FMLA Policy (Again!)

Ver la versión en español aquí On June 26, 2015, the United States Supreme Court held in Obergefell v. Hodges, that the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution “requires a State to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex … Continue Reading
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