The USDOL is busy again issuing Opinion Letters and has again turned its focus to the issue of inclusion/exclusion of bonuses into the regular rate for purposes of overtime computation. These Letters are not binding on courts but they operate to evidence the agency’s position on whatever issue is being addressed so they are extremely
Fluctuating Work Week Calculation of Back Due Overtime Not Allowed by Pennsylvania Supreme Court
I have long been a fan of the fluctuating work week (FWW) method of paying overtime to non-exempt salaried employees. This computation yields a half-time calculation, i.e. a lower calculation than dividing the salary by forty and then calculating time and one half of that number. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has recently held that this
Changing Employees From Exempt to Non-Exempt “With the Season” Is Legal!
Many industries and businesses are seasonal and I have been often approached with a client question to the effect of whether the client can change the exempt status of workers, depending on the season. This occurs, for example, in the case of an employee who is the Head Coach of an athletic team for a
New DOL Proposed Rule on Fluctuating Work Week Is a Keeper!
I like how the USDOL is moving along with proposals and plans that assist employers in running their businesses, compensating their employees fairly, and, importantly, not running afoul of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The agency has now proposed a rule that would allow employers to use the so-called “fluctuating workweek” formula for overtime
USDOL Raking It in for Underpaid Employees: Is This the Promised Positive Change Towards Business?
There has been a lot of talk about how much more pro-business the U.S. Department of Labor was going to be under this Administration. Well, appearances can be deceiving, as a report has just come out indicating that the agency collected in excess of $322 million last year for workers who did not receive proper
Working Time/Travel Time Case Thrown Out: No Integral Connection to Primary Duty
I have defended many claims and lawsuits involving working time, especially travel time. Employees are continually seeking innovative ways to convert their otherwise non-compensable home-to-work travel into compensable work hours. These efforts often fail, as illustrated by a recent case where Chicago police officers sought pay for transporting and storing their guns and then retrieving
New USDOL Wage Hour Administrator Issues Opinion Letter Finding Paralegals Can Be Exempt: A New Day Dawning!
New USDOL Wage Hour Administrator Issues Opinion Letter Finding Paralegals Can Be Exempt: A New Day Dawning!
Under the Trump Administration, there has been a return to the issuance of Opinion Letters which I have highly applauded. I also applaud the rather pro-employer stance that many of these Letters have reflected. Another example of both
Joint Employer Angle Gives Interesting Twist to FLSA Truck Driver Collective Action
The whole trick for a plaintiff (and his lawyers) in a FLSA collective action case is to try to get conditional certification. Once that happens, the stakes automatically escalate for the defendant-employer, often leaving settlement as the most viable and cheapest manner of resolving the case. This process becomes more complicated when there is, as
No OT for Hourly Paid Nurses in Offbeat Texas Lawsuit
This is a very interesting case. A group of nurses at a Texas hospital claimed they their employer intended to pay them an annual salary rather than an hourly rate and thus they were owed no back wages. They won in the lower court and appellate court but, now, the Texas Supreme Court has reversed,
Another Automatic Lunch Deduction FLSA Collective Action: How Many Times Does It Have to Happen?
I have blogged numerous times about these automatic lunch deduction cases and have suggested remedies. Yet, these cases proliferate. Another very recent example is that of a hospital that has agreed to pay more than $4,000,000 to settle a FLSA collective action where the workers allege that their employer violated the Fair Labor Standards Act