The USDOL has proposed a new cut-down (watered down?) test for determining when entities are a joint employer. Such a finding leads to the aggregating of employee hours which are worked at both places as well as rendering the entities jointly liable for wage-hour (e.g. overtime) violations.
The focus of the new proposal is a
We have been waiting for the United States Department of Labor to announce its plan for toning down the overtime rule revisions implemented in the last administration, but stayed by federal courts, and to announce its own proposal. Now, that momentous event has happened—the agency announced yesterday it will set the salary threshold at $35,308
There is an old saying, “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.” Everybody thinks that is funny as, often, the opposite is true, especially for the employer community. Well, the USDOL is putting a new spin on this maxim by creating an office to (supposedly) help employers in complying with the Fair
The issue of who is and who is not an independent contractor has exploded on the legal scene in recent years. Many agencies are honing in on this topic and I have, over the last five years, probably defended more than fifty audits, inspections and lawsuits involving this issue. Well, the landscape just got murkier,
I am a big believer in advice from the U.S. Department of Labor. I have applauded the re-introduction of opinion letters and I welcome any published guidance (on any subject) so I can better advise/counsel my clients on compliance issues. The home health care industry has been aflutter recently with all kinds of litigation and
The car wash industry is one that is subject to many alleged wage-hour issues (some might say abuses). A recent case illustrates this maxim. A car wash has just settled a lawsuit with the USDOL for $4.2 million on wage hour claims. The theory was that the employer avoided paying proper minimum wage and overtime
I have blogged about some USDOL initiatives of late and see they are picking up some momentum with further developments coming down the line. The agency is going to revise the manner in which overtime is calculated (maybe to the employer’s benefit) and speak more on the issue (thorny as it is) of inclusion of
A group that monitors government activities sued the U.S. Department of Labor last year seeking records related to the agency’s position and work on the new overtime rules and the fiduciary rules asserted to a federal judge that the agency was being less than forthcoming with the documents. In response, the Judge stated that he
The Trump Administration has issued its regulatory agenda, which is a semi-annual statement of the short- and long-term policy plans of government agencies. The DOL is at the forefront of these changes to come. The agency stated that it will revise the definition of “regular rate,” the number that forms the basis for overtime computations
I have done a lot of independent contractor work in New Jersey, defended many such cases, from (numerous) unemployment audits to FLSA class actions. The New Jersey test, the A-B-C test, is well-established and one of the hardest for the putative employer to prevail upon. The test was, just a few years ago, reinforced by