General Wage & Hour Law News & Updates

Several months ago, the US Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a rule in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“Notice”) to define when someone is/is not an independent contractor.  The focus

Continue Reading USDOL Proposed New Independent Contractor Doctrine Focuses On Control: An Interesting Take?

I am always interested in statute of limitations issues and cases because it is the first defense I look to when defending a FLSA case. On occasion, a suit will

Continue Reading Dismissal Of FLSA Class Action On Statute Of Limitations Grounds: An Interesting (And Important) Variation On The Theme

I have defended dozens of nursing homes, home health services, residential care centers and other health care providers in audits of their wage practices by the US. Department of Labor

Continue Reading The Long-Term Health Care Industry Faces New, Intense USDOL Scrutiny: Make Sure You Are FLSA Compliant!

I read an interesting blog post by Seyfarth Shaw on a working time case in a call center. I have often blogged about working time cases, preliminary/postliminary cases, and have

Continue Reading The De Minimis Doctrine May Not Be As Moribund As I Have Thought: Call Center Case Makes This (Important) Point

I have blogged on this issue a number of times, i.e., that federal courts are starting to tilt away from the typical and very, very easy way that plaintiffs now

Continue Reading Sixth Circuit Joins Fifth Circuit In Looking Towards A New, Fairer Way To Determine Whether Conditional Certification Is Appropriate: A New Day Dawning!

The certification process for FLSA collective actions has typically been a two-step process. The first step is to secure conditional certification, which is often handed out as easily as a

Continue Reading The Times They Are A Changin’–A District Court Rejects The “Usual” Two Tier FLSA Class Action Certification Model

I read an interesting blog post by Epstein Becker on the misunderstood issue of gap time and what that means for employers.  It notes that employees must be paid overtime

Continue Reading Gap Time Claims: What Are They And Can Employees Recover Back Wages For Them? Depends On Where The Employer Is Located

I have many clients that use staffing/temporary agencies for securing personnel.  The danger lurking in these relationships is that the two entities (staffing company and client) may be found to

Continue Reading Staffing Companies and Their Clients: A Possible Disaster Brewing Because Of Independent Contractor Misclassification

For years, the outside sales exemption of the Part 541 white collar exemptions of the FLSA used to be the easiest one for an employer to demonstrate.  For the exemption

Continue Reading Too Much Employer Control Over Outside Salespersons Undermines The Exemption: Should We Be Worried?