A worker experiencing health difficulties presents challenges for the employee… and her employer. Employers should proceed carefully, ensuring that any potentially adverse actions they take do not run afoul of federal law. A misstep in this regard could harm not just the worker but also the employer’s business if it…
Business owners face many business risks. One that is regrettably on the rise in the food service industry is the “dine and dash,” where customers consume food or drinks, and then leave without paying. The rise of this practice raises some important questions about who pays for dine-and-dashers’ purchases and…
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 13.3 million people held jobs in sales and related occupations in May 2023. This group includes, for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and overtime requirements, both exempt and non-exempt employees. Employers should proceed carefully in classifying…
Whether you are an employer or an employee, it is important to recognize that the Fair Labor Standards Act imposes several limitations on an employer’s pay practices, and employers can run afoul of the law (and its accompanying regulations) in many ways. If you have questions or have identified a…
The Family and Medical Leave Act provides workers with many important statutory rights, including ones designed to protect employees from inappropriate workplace punishment for exercising their rights, or wrongful denial of benefits. These rights and protections are not unlimited, and they are not a “straitjacket” on employers preventing them from…
Collective actions (which are highly similar to class actions except they litigate workers’ Fair Labor Standards Act claims against their employers) are occurring more frequently. This reality serves as a reminder of the importance, as an employer, of ensuring complete compliance when it comes to the minimum wage, overtime, classification,…
Whether you are a worker who needs to take time off from work or an employer, it is well worth your while to become familiar with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and its rights and obligations. The FMLA offers essential rights to certain employees, but those rights are…
Compliance with the federal overtime compensation and the minimum wage standards can be affected by many things… even the weather. These wide and varied influences on businesses’ compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act (and accompanying regulations) serve as a reminder that ensuring compliance is an extensive and multifaceted project.…
As an employer, there are many ways to resolve a minimum wage dispute. Sometimes, there is no way within your control to keep the matter from going to trial but, oftentimes, options to avoid time-consuming and potentially expensive litigation exist if you desire to pursue them. When you are facing…
Across the country, many state and local governments are enacting – or debating — legislation to combat wage theft. Another body considering statutory changes is the federal government, where a proposed bill would substantially increase the penalties on employers found to have violated the FLSA’s prohibitions against wage theft. Whether…