Wages & Hours

What are the rules on setting a late policy?

10/03/2011

Q, We would like to institute a rule subjecting employees to discipline for clocking in late. Are we permitted to do this even though we round our employees’ time to the nearest quarter-hour?

What can we do about an employee who racked up hours of unauthorized overtime?

09/28/2011

Q. We orally warned an employee not to work overtime. Recently, he claimed to have worked 56 hours straight, eating and sleeping only on regular break times. The timecards say he was here, but we don’t have any night staff, so we can’t verify if he was actually at work. Is there anything we can do?

Feds offer partial amnesty for contractor misclassification

09/27/2011

If you’ve been worried that some of your workers may be incorrectly classified as independent contractors, but leery about opening a legal can of worms to fix potential problems, Uncle Sam is offering to cut you a break. Learn about a new program designed to help you get your records in order—and avoid penalties.

End the silence: The case against secret salaries

09/21/2011

It’s a golden rule in most businesses: Salaries must be kept secret. It’s almost universally accepted that mayhem would ensue in the workplace if people knew what their co-workers, their managers or—gasp—the CEO was making. Three major reasons why secret salaries are silly, according to consultant Alexander Kjerulf:

L.A. ‘hostess’ dancers sue for wage violations, harassment

09/20/2011

A group of dancers at a Los Angeles “hostess club” are suing for wage-and-hour violations, claiming the owners of Club 907 also subjected them to “exploitative, substandard and degrading working conditions.”

Does San Francisco car wash soak its Latino workers?

09/20/2011

The city of San Francisco has filed suit against a car wash for overtime and waiting-time violations. City Attorney Dennis Herrera and La Raza Centro Legal allege that Tower Car Wash, which has a contract with San Francisco to wash city-owned vehicles, failed to pay employees for the hours between when they arrive at work and when they’re permitted to clock in.

How can we recoup stolen money?

09/16/2011

Q. We just fired an employee after discovering that he stole $5,000 from the company. Do we have to pay the employee his final paycheck or can we apply that paycheck toward the $5,000 he owes us?

Electrolux redux: Ramadan schedules still in dispute

09/16/2011

Last year, Electrolux agreed to adjust its break schedule to accommodate Muslim employees working the evening shift at its St. Cloud plant. The EEOC mediated last year’s agreement in a process that was hailed as a model of cooperation between the employer, employees and the federal government. Problem solved, right? Not so fast.

Off-hours training: Paid or unpaid?

09/14/2011

Q. We are requiring some hourly employees to take additional training. Those who work the day shift can attend the training in lieu of work. But employees who work the night shift will have to come in during the day. Must we pay extra for the night shift employees to attend the training?

BellSouth ‘managers’ win class certification

09/13/2011

A federal judge has allowed an FLSA class-action lawsuit against BellSouth Telecommunications to move forward. The class consists of “level-one” managers who claim they have been misclassified so the company won’t have to give them overtime pay.