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Wages & Hours

$4.2 million settlement in parking lot wage case

07/20/2010
Chicago-based Standard Parking Corp. recently settled a wage-and-hour lawsuit brought by current and former California parking attendants, valets and cashiers. The company will pay more than $4 million to some 7,100 employees.

Farm workers would get OT sooner if bill passes

07/20/2010
A bill that would give California farm workers overtime pay for working fewer hours per week was recently approved in the state Senate. The bill, S.B. 1211, would allow farm workers to receive overtime pay for working more than 40 hours in a week, down from the current 60-hour threshold.

Privacy concern: Are ‘group’ time sheets legal?

07/19/2010
Q. Currently, we require each individual employee to fill out his or her own time sheet. But we’re considering a new format that lists all employees on one time sheet. Is this legal? Or should each employee’s time sheet be kept confidential?

Must we pay for our employees’ uniforms?

07/15/2010
Q. Our organization requires employees to wear uniforms on the job. Do we have an obligation to pay for the uniforms?

What’s the word on the kind of work high school students are allowed to perform?

07/15/2010
Q. Our company owns a number of hardware stores and we plan to hire some high school students this fall. Are there certain limitations under child labor laws that restrict the types of duties that minors can be allowed to perform?

In our company, sleeping on the job is OK, but do we have to pay employees for it?

07/15/2010
Q. We operate a home health care business. Our employees frequently are on duty for more than 24 hours. If employees are able to sleep during shifts that are 24 hours or more, do we have to pay them for those hours?

What are the rules on paying for weekend travel time?

07/13/2010
It’s one of the trickier wage-and-hour questions: How to pay hourly employees who travel on days they usually don’t work, such as Saturdays and Sundays. Learn the intricacies of determining which hours are paid, which are not and how the Portal-to-Portal Act exception to the Fair Labor Standards Act comes into play.

Bank of America workers sue for overtime

07/13/2010

Workers at Bank of America’s retail branches and call centers in five states have filed a lawsuit claiming they are due unpaid overtime from the banking giant. The suit, filed in federal district court in Kansas, alleges the bank requires employees to work more than 40 hours per week, but only pays them for 40.

Offering new employee higher pay than incumbent of opposite sex? Document why

07/13/2010
Sometimes, you really do need to recruit someone from outside the organization—someone who may already be earning more than you usually pay your employees. When making a hire like that, make sure you document why you chose to top existing salaries, especially if the new hire is the opposite sex of any incumbents.

How do we know if we must pay interns?

07/09/2010
Q. Our company would like to hire interns to work in our office this fall, but we’re not sure if we have to pay them. What are some guidelines as to whether or not we need to put them on the payroll?