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FLSA

DOL gets free pass when suing employers for wage violations

12/09/2008

Employers, beware: The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has just made it much easier for the DOL to file lawsuits against employers. All the DOL needs to do is file a complaint alleging unpaid wages.

Florida staffing company owes NY workers $113,000

12/09/2008

Star One Staffing, based in Coral Gables, has agreed to pay $113,000 in back wages and damages to 70 Filipino workers to settle charges brought by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Don’t let fines, tool costs undercut base wage

12/05/2008

Watch out if you ever fine employees, force them to pay others to perform work they can’t finish or make them provide their own equipment. Those expenses may cause them to earn less than the minimum wage.

If you don’t track hours, overtime lawsuit may become nightmare

12/05/2008

Many employers make mistakes when it comes to classifying employees—either exempt (salaried) or nonexempt (hourly) from the federal overtime rules. Those mistakes can lead to expensive class-action lawsuits. And if employers failed to track hours worked, it makes it all the more difficult to settle the case.

Justin Timberlake is sued for wage-and-hour violations

12/05/2008

A busboy who worked in singer and actor Justin Timberlake’s Manhattan restaurant, Southern Comfort, is suing the star seeking unpaid wages and tips.

Calif. OT law may apply to out-of-state workers

11/25/2008

Do you have employees who live and work in another state, but whose jobs sometimes bring them to California? Then you may be making a big overtime mistake if you pay them as if they were working in their home states.

Must we pay for hours lost due to power failure?

11/21/2008

Q. We recently had a power outage and called employees who weren’t in yet to tell them to come in when the power was back up. We then gave these people a chance to make up the lost time by working late or using paid time off. Do we have to pay them for the hours they missed?

U.S. Steel miner files suit; says time clock cheating workers

11/12/2008

John Zupancich, a miner who works in the Minntac Mine in Mountain Iron, has filed a lawsuit against U.S. Steel, claiming the company’s timecard practices rob workers of as much as two hours of pay each week.

What are the rules regarding owner pay in a startup company?

11/12/2008

Q. We are a startup company seeking investors, and we currently have limited cash flow. The company’s founders own the company on a 50/50 basis and are serving as the company’s officers. We can’t afford to pay them, and they are willing to work for free as part of their investment in building the company. Can we do that?

Are meal and rest periods mandatory?

11/10/2008

Q. We run a manufacturing facility, and our production needs do not always permit our employees to take breaks during the workday. A group of employees have complained that we are required by law to provide rest breaks and a lunch break during their shifts. Are they right?