Wages & Hours

Final rule: Fed contractor employees to earn at least $15 per hour

11/23/2021

The U.S. Department of Labor on Nov. 22 issued a final rule increasing the minimum wage for employees working on federal contracts to $15 per hour beginning Jan. 30, 2022.

Survey: Most employers conduct pay equity reviews

11/09/2021

Nearly three in five employers—58%—voluntarily conduct pay equity reviews to identify possible pay differences between employees performing similar work, according to new research by the Society for Human Resource Management.

Employment law: What’s out, what’s in revised reconciliation bill

10/28/2021

The Build Back Better budget reconciliation legislation that has languished in Congress for months has been scaled back to make it more affordable. Some employment-related initiatives have been tweaked, while others remain part of the package.

Employees want raises soon, or else they’ll jump ship

10/26/2021

Workers believe pay raises are overdue and they want one soon, according to research by the Robert Half employment firm. Its 2022 Salary Guide concludes employers will have to pay more if they want to keep their best workers from seeking new jobs elsewhere.

Pay transparency a hallmark of employer fairness

10/26/2021

Transparency around compensation is a key driver of employees’ perception that they work for an organization that is fair, according to new research by the Society for Human Resource Management.

Most employers won’t base teleworkers’ pay on location

10/21/2021

More than two-thirds (69%) of employers say they don’t plan to offer reduced pay for remote workers who live in lower-cost cities, says a new Payscale survey.

Snapshot: 49% of workers feel they are underpaid

10/19/2021

Discontent about compensation is widespread among employees of all ages.

Tech solutions help staff hard-to-fill shifts

10/07/2021

By now, it’s clear that retailers will have serious problems attracting enough workers to meet customer demand this coming holiday season. That leaves employers battling it out to recruit new workers. But some companies have decided it’s more productive to ask current employees to work longer hours.

2021’s rapid wage growth likely to surge again in ’23

09/21/2021

Thus far in 2021, wages in the U.S. have grown at the fastest pace in over 20 years. According to the Conference Board business advisory organization, the surge is likely to persist in the near term—and over the next decade as pandemic uncertainties fade and long-range demographic factors come to the fore.

Take local predictable scheduling laws seriously

09/16/2021

These days, it’s harder than ever to schedule hourly workers. But before the pandemic hit, scores of cities and towns adopted predictable scheduling laws aimed at letting hourly workers plan their lives around regular schedules. Ignoring those rules may mean big payouts for affected workers.