Seyfarth Synopsis: On September 11, 2024, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held in Mayfield v. U.S. Department of Labor that the Secretary’s salary tests for evaluating overtime exemptions are valid and do not exceed the Department of Labor’s authority under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).
Robert Mayfield, a Texas-based fast-food purveyor, challenged
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Ruling: 2019 Salary Threshold Increase Did Not Exceed Authority
Seyfarth Synopsis: As reported by Seyfarth, the Fifth Circuit’s January 2021 decision in Swales v. KLLM Transport Services, LLC and the Sixth Circuit’s May 2023 decision in Clark v. A&L Homecare and Training Center, et al. represent significant shifts in the standard for court-authorized notice in Fair Labor Standards Act collective actions. Last week, the Eastern District of Wisconsin followed
Continue Reading From Leniency to Scrutiny: The New FLSA Certification Landscape
The rules governing the employment relationship are always changing. Laws creating new employer obligations, technology solutions making work more efficient and more complicated, and rules governing the resolution of disputes between employers and their workers are around every corner. Wage and Hour Around the Corner is a new blog series for employers, in-house lawyers, and HR, payroll, and compensation, that
Continue Reading Wage and Hour Around the Corner: DOL Issues Guidance on Wage-Hour Risk Posed by Artificial Intelligence
Tips from Seyfarth is a blog series for employers, and their in-house lawyers and HR, payroll, and compensation professionals, in the food, beverage, and hospitality sector. We curate wage and hour compliance “tips” to keep this busy industry informed.
Seyfarth Synopsis: In a unanimous decision, a panel of the Fifth Circuit invalidated the DOL’s 2021 rule codifying the 80/20 rule.
Continue Reading Tips from Seyfarth: In a Major Win for Restaurants, Fifth Circuit Vacates DOL’s 80/20 Rule
Seyfarth Synopsis: While reversing a grant of summary judgment in favor of an employer based on the de minimis doctrine, the Ninth Circuit held that the doctrine still can apply under the FLSA.
As readers of this blog, and particularly fans of The Princess Bride, know well, the de minimis doctrine is considered by many to be “mostly dead”
Continue Reading The De Minimis Doctrine Lives to Fight Another Day
Seyfarth Synopsis: The first challenge to the Department of Labor’s overtime rule has landed, but what the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas will do with it and how any decision will affect businesses remains up in the air. As this litigation develops, businesses must still prepare for the upcoming July 1, 2024 salary threshold increase.
What
Continue Reading Déjà vu All Over Again: The DOL Overtime Rule Faces Legal Challenge
The United States Supreme Court unanimously held that when a district court compels claims to arbitration, the district court must stay – rather than dismiss – the district court case. In Smith v. Spizzirri, the Supreme Court resolved a circuit split. It overruled precedent from the First, Fifth, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits and agreed with decisions from the Second
Continue Reading Staying Around – The Supreme Court Resolves Circuit Split and Mandates that Cases Compelled to Arbitration be Stayed (Not Dismissed)
Seyfarth Synopsis: On April 29, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division released a Field Assistance Bulletin addressing the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act to use of artificial intelligence and other automated systems in the workplace.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is seemingly ubiquitous. By 2025, half of Human Resource departments are predicted to use AI in
Continue Reading DOL Issues Guidance on Wage-Hour Risk Posed by Artificial Intelligence
Seyfarth Synopsis: Last week, a Washington healthcare company was ordered to pay 33,000 workers $98.3 million in damages in a class action related to its meal break and timeclock rounding practices. The vast majority of the awarded damages pertain to missed meal breaks, but the award included an offset of about $1 million to account for the fact that
Continue Reading Washington Healthcare Company Ordered to Pay Workers Almost $100M for Missed Meal Breaks, Unpaid Time
Seyfarth synopsis: Today, the U.S. DOL unveiled its final overtime rule. The rule significantly increases the minimum salary for so-called “white collar” employees to be exempt from the federal FLSA’s overtime pay requirements. This development requires attention from virtually all employers.
The DOL’s final overtime rule, Defining and Delimiting the Exemptions for Executive, Administrative, Professional, Outside Sales, and Computer Employees
Continue Reading U.S. DOL Releases Final Overtime Rule—Effective July 2024