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FLSA

Management meeting counts as work time

11/01/2000

Q. Last week, we asked a nonexempt employee to come in 30 minutes before her regular start time to talk to her about a complaint that had come to our attention. Do we have to pay her for the time spent in discussions with management? —G.B., Kentucky

Age-related laws: Liability lurks at both ends of spectrum

10/01/2000
Federal employment laws protect workers from cradle to grave, but in very different ways. For young workers, the law prevents them from performing dangerous …

Extra travel time counts as work time

10/01/2000

Q. One of our executives will be making day trips once a week to New York from Washington, D.C., for a special assignment, and her secretary will be accompanying her. The secretary’s regular workday is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The trips will require the secretary to arrive at the airport by 7:30 a.m., and she’ll be back in Washington by 8 p.m. Do we have to compensate the nonexempt secretary for her travel time to and from New York? —L.L., Washington, D.C.

Plan for legal consequences of flextime, job sharing

08/01/2000
It’s no secret that offering flextime and job-sharing arrangements can help your company retain valued employees and develop a more committed work …

Pay former workers promptly; don’t wait for them to ask

07/01/2000

Audra Wales called in sick to the Wendy’s restaurant where she worked on Jan. 11 and then showed up later that day to pick up her regular paycheck. During a dispute …

Congress clarifies: Stock options are benefits, not pay

07/01/2000
If you give stock options to nonexempt workers, don’t worry that the additional compensation will drive up their overtime pay. President Clinton has signed legislation …

Limits on payroll deductions

07/01/2000

Q. An employee has not returned our calls or come to work at our hotel for over a week. She has a set of office keys and owes money for laundry. Can I hold her check until she returns the keys or pays for her laundry? Alternatively, can I deduct the cost of replacing the keys and laundry from her last paycheck? —I.C., Maryland

Misleading your employees risks ‘career fraud’ claim

06/01/2000
After General Dynamics reached a settlement in a class-action overtime case, other employees at the company were given the opportunity to “opt in” on the lawsuit in late 1993. But managers allegedly told …

Don’t try docking pay for smoking breaks.

06/01/2000
An employer who allowed his workers to take a series of short smoking breaks had to compensate them for the time. Reason: Such approved short breaks (20 minutes or less) are …

Fix classification errors promptly or ‘window of correction’ will close

06/01/2000
A group of managers and registered nurses who worked for Santa Clara County, Calif., were classified as exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), making …