Archives: Wage and Hour

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Governor Newsom Imposes Greater Pay Transparency Requirements on California Employers

Photo of Sylvia KimPhoto of Kerri SakaueBy Sylvia Kim and Kerri Sakaue on Posted in California, Wage and Hour
On Sept. 27, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 1162. As previously reported, SB 1162 significantly expands pay reporting and disclosure requirements for most California employers. Effective Jan. 1, 2023, California employers must disclose pay ranges in job postings and make pay scale information available to current employees upon reasonable request. The … Continue Reading

Colorado Approves Changes to Unemployment Insurance Notices

Photo of Jacob A. BrunerPhoto of Alexis OpperBy Jacob A. Bruner and Alexis Opper on Posted in Colorado, Wage and Hour
This past spring, Colorado legislators enacted several new employment-related laws, including Senate Bill 22-234. The bill provides $600 million in federal pandemic relief funds to replenish Colorado’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and updates the notice requirements employers must follow when providing employees with information about unemployment insurance. … Continue Reading

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Abrogates Employers’ Sole Defense to Automatic Treble Damages Liability for Late Final Wage Payments

Photo of Matthew KanePhoto of Amy E. BeverlinPhoto of Daniel LulaBy Matthew Kane, Amy E. Beverlin and Daniel Lula on Posted in Wage and Hour
On April 4, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court handed employees there yet another victory in Reuter v. City of Methuen, holding that they are automatically entitled to triple damages for any late payment of final wages even where the employer already has paid the employee the total wages due before a claim or complaint is … Continue Reading

Tried and True Lessons from 2021 on Meal and Rest Break Best Practices for California Employers

Photo of Shareef FaragPhoto of Margaret RosenthalPhoto of Ari SpitzerBy Shareef Farag, Margaret Rosenthal and Ari Spitzer on Posted in California, Wage and Hour
In 2021, the California Supreme Court handed down two important decisions, Donohue v. AMN Services, LLC and Ferra v. Loews Hollywood, LLC, that reinforce and refine tried and true lessons about meal and rest breaks. As California employers look ahead to their 2022 goals, compliance with these decisions should be top of mind. Donohue: Do … Continue Reading

The Department of Labor’s Latest Final Rule Publication Regulates Managers Who Receive Tips and Delineates Willful Violations of the FLSA

Photo of Caroline M. LandtPhoto of David GrantBy Caroline M. Landt and David Grant on Posted in FLSA, Uncategorized, Wage and Hour
“Drip, drip, drip” is the best description of the Biden administration’s staggered attack on the 2020 Tip Final Rule through delays, withdrawals, amendments and notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). The latest action by the Department of Labor (DOL) came last week, when the Wage and Hour Division published its final rule addressing managers who receive … Continue Reading

Pennsylvania Employers Beware: The State’s Highest Court Expands the Bounds of Compensable Time

Photo of Christian WhitePhoto of Carlos TorrejonBy Christian White and Carlos Torrejon on Posted in Wage and Hour
In a 5-2 decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that employers in the state must now pay employees for time spent on their premises when waiting for – and undergoing – required security searches. The court explained that this period of time, even if insubstantial, is compensable because it qualifies as “hours worked” under the … Continue Reading

The Devil Is In the Details: Department of Labor Publishes Tipped Employee Proposed Final Rule

Photo of Caroline M. LandtPhoto of David GrantBy Caroline M. Landt and David Grant on Posted in DOL, Wage and Hour
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) regarding tipped employees. Rejecting the Trump administration’s proposed rules governing tip-credit employees performing non-tipped duties, the DOL proposes to adopt what is known as the 80/20 rule. The devil is in the details, and the DOL now limits the 20 percent … Continue Reading

Snapshot or Long Exposure? Dep’t Of Labor Approves New IC Test … For Now

Photo of Todd LebowitzBy Todd Lebowitz on Posted in Department of Labor, Independent Contractor, Wage and Hour
This octopus in New Zealand has been trained to take photos of visitors to the Sea Life Aquarium. That’s a pretty neat trick. I’m sure the visitors love it and will pay whatever exorbitant fee the aquarium charges to profit on the back of its cephalopod slave labor, but will the photos last? Do the … Continue Reading

Reminder: Beginning Jan. 1, Colorado Employers Have Strict Requirements Under the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act

Photo of Nathan A. SchachtPhoto of Jacob A. BrunerBy Nathan A. Schacht and Jacob A. Bruner on Posted in Wage and Hour
As we reported in our blog post in June 2019, last year, Colorado started the process of tightening its protections for pay equity. The state’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act (the Act), which was signed into law last year, takes effect on Jan. 1, 2021, and results in requirements that employers should immediately consider. … Continue Reading

Wage and Hour Division Issues Two Employer-Friendly Rules

Photo of David GrantPhoto of Shareef FaragBy David Grant and Shareef Farag on Posted in Wage and Hour
This week, the Wage and Hour Division announced the issuance of two rules interpreting the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that modernize its application and lessen the burden of overtime calculations for certain employers. First, the agency has eliminated archaic distinctions hindering use of the exception for retail or service establishments under Section 7(i) of … Continue Reading

Colorado Issues Sweeping Wage and Hour Law Changes for Private Employers Through New Wage Order

Photo of Jacob A. BrunerPhoto of Nathan A. SchachtBy Jacob A. Bruner and Nathan A. Schacht on Posted in Wage and Hour
Effective March 16, 2020, COMPS Order #36 (the Order), issued by the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, will bring about sweeping changes to Colorado’s overtime and minimum pay standards (COMPS) impacting private employers. The Order will also succeed the currently operative Amended Minimum Wage Order #35, which is the source of Colorado’s wage rights … Continue Reading

Colorado Shores Up Employee Protections for Criminal History Inquiries, Wage Theft and Pay Equity During Busy 2019 Legislative Session

Photo of Nathan A. SchachtBy Nathan A. Schacht on Posted in Policies, Wage and Hour
Colorado’s 2019 legislative session was busy, including producing a trio of new employment laws that tighten regulations on employers in the areas of pay equity, criminal history inquiries and wage theft. Employers face comprehensive changes and should review pay practices, application processes, advancement and promotion policies, and employee record-keeping to comply with these new laws.… Continue Reading

Connecticut to Raise Minimum Wage to $15 Per Hour

Photo of Saima SheikhBy Saima Sheikh on Posted in Wage and Hour
On May 28, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed Public Act No. 19-4, entitled “An Act Increasing the Minimum Fair Wage,” that will raise the Connecticut minimum wage to $15.00 per hour in 2023, which is more than double the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Under the new law, the current Connecticut minimum … Continue Reading

New Year Brings New Requirements For Calculating Tipped Employee Wages In Massachusetts

Photo of Shawn ButteBy Shawn Butte on Posted in Wage and Hour
Earlier this year, Gov. Charlie Baker signed a comprehensive bill titled “An Act Relative to Minimum Wage, Paid Family Medical Leave and the Sales Tax Holiday,” which brought a variety of new protections for employees in Massachusetts. These protections include the implementation of a state-administered paid family and medical leave program, an increase of the … Continue Reading

Hope for Employers on the Wage and Hour Front: The Department of Labor Brings Back Opinion Letters

Photo of Amy J. TraubPhoto of Amanda Van Hoose GarofaloBy Amy J. Traub and Amanda Van Hoose Garofalo on Posted in Wage and Hour
Given the exponential uptick in wage and hour lawsuits during the Obama administration and the United States Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) continuing aggressive enforcement of wage and hour laws, many employers have felt the risk of a potential lawsuit looming over their heads for pay violations they may not even know exist. Before 2010, Opinion … Continue Reading

Texas Judge Halts December 1 Implementation of Department of Labor’s “Overtime Final Rule”

Photo of Ashlee GrantBy Ashlee Grant on Posted in Wage and Hour
UPDATE: As anticipated, the Department of Labor has filed its Notice of Appeal with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, asserting that Judge Mazzant’s Nov. 22, 2016, Order enjoining the enforcement of the Department of Labor’s Final Overtime Rule “rests on an error of law and should be reversed.” The DOL has also requested that … Continue Reading

DOL Mandates Paid Sick Leave for Employees of Federal Contractors

Photo of Carrie ValdezBy Carrie Valdez on Posted in DOL, Wage and Hour
Just a year after President Obama signed Executive Order 13706, Establishing Paid Sick Leave for Federal Contractors, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced its final rule mandating that federal contractors provide paid sick leave to employees who work “on or in connection with” federal contracts. The rule applies to new and renewed contracts with the … Continue Reading
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