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HR Support on Employee Compensation Laws
Editor's Note: Be sure you've classified your employees correctly!
Overview: Determining if an employee should be classified as an independent contractor or an employee under the FLSA and IRS is a perennial issue that continues to confound many workplaces; misclassification is surprisingly common and results in costly litigation.
To further complicate matters, properly classifying an employee regarding their exempt or non-exempt status befuddles many HR professionals; employee misclassification similarly results in a long list of costly litigation, many resulting in companies owing years of back pay for overtime due to having improperly classified employees as exempt when the proper employee classification should have been non-exempt (and thereby eligible for overtime).
Other FLSA regulations and state compliance challenges pertaining to employee compensation laws include deciding whether employees must be paid for certain activities, such as meal and rest breaks or training. minimum wage laws, overtime laws, child labor, and recordkeeping are additional aspects of FLSA compliance, most of which have variations by state.
Trends: Of concern to employers, not only are employees continuing to file FLSA lawsuits at a rapid pace but also the U.S. Department of Labor has stepped up its enforcement of employee compensation laws. So it's more important than ever to ensure compliance with this law.
Michael Cardman, Legal Editor
Latest items in Employee Compensation
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California Vice: Targeted Inspections Yield Record-High Minimum Wage and Overtime Assessments
California's Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) assessed $13 million in unpaid overtime and $3 million in unpaid minimum wages last year, a huge increase over previous years that the agency credits to its new approach to enforcement.
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Employment At-Will Content Enhanced in Several States
XpertHR has enhanced its coverage of the Employment At-Will doctrine in several states, including Louisiana, South Carolina, the District of Columbia and Texas. Employers with locations in these jurisdictions should review these additions to further enhance their understanding of how the employment at-will doctrine works in these states, together with the major exceptions to it that are relevant to defending and preventing wrongful termination cases.
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Vermont Passes Legislation Expanding Employee Rights to Equal Pay and Flexible Workplace
Vermont recently enacted a law amending the Vermont Fair Employment Practice Law and expanding existing equal pay and discrimination laws to provide greater protection to employees. 2013 Bill Text VT H.B. 99; 2013 Bill Text VT S.B. 57.
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Payment of Wages: Minnesota
In-depth review of the spectrum of Minnesota employment law requirements HR must follow with respect to payment of wages.
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May an employer claim the minimum wage tip credit for employees who don't spend all their time waiting tables or performing other tip-producing activities?
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Does an employer have to pay interns?
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May an employer claim a larger tip credit for overtime hours?
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What is the tip credit?
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Hawaii Section Updated to Reflect Further Wage and Hour Recordkeeping Requirements
The Hawaii Recordkeeping section of XpertHR's Employment Law Manual has been updated to reflect a new law that will create additional requirements for wage and hour recordkeeping and for pay stubs.
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May an employer count automatic gratuities for large parties as a tip credit against the minimum wage?
About this topic
HR and legal considerations for employers regarding employee compensation laws. Support on following rules and regulations regarding this topic.