Seyfarth Synopsis: The Second Circuit held that attorneys’ fee awards in FLSA settlements are not limited by principles of “proportionality” between the fees and the amount of the settlement or subject to a 1/3 cap.
In the Second Circuit, settlements in FLSA lawsuits are subject to strict court scrutiny to ensure that…
By Patrick Bannon and Michael Steinberg
Seyfarth Synopsis: An appellate court has ruled that a district court should not authorize notice of an FLSA suit to employees who are ineligible to join the suit because they agreed to resolve disputes exclusively through arbitration. And, the court recognized that sending FLSA notice too broadly can…
By: Alex Passantino, Brett Bartlett, and Noah Finkel
Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 12, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor announced its Final Rule clarifying the issue of joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The Final Rule adopts a four-factor balancing test and rejects various factors that have fueled recent litigation, e.g.…
By: Alex Passantino
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division recently issued two opinion letters providing clarity to employers in determining (1) the proper overtime rate of pay for non-discretionary, multi-week bonuses; and (2) whether certain per-project payments are sufficient to satisfy the salary basis test required for the FLSA’s white-collar…
Seyfarth Synopsis: In the December 16, 2019, Federal Register, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division (WHD) published its final rule clarifying and updating the regulations governing the regular rate requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Generally, the FLSA requires overtime to be paid at a rate that is at least…
By Robert S. Whitman, Howard M. Wexler, and Thomas F. Howley
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Second Circuit held that FLSA settlements pursuant to Rule 68 Offers of Judgment do not require judicial approval. The Court distinguished such settlements from Rule 41 stipulated dismissals, which still require approval under Cheeks v. Freeport Pancake House.…
By: John Yslas and Carolina Nunez
Seyfarth Synopsis: In acquiring a company, there is often a tendency to think an asset purchase (as opposed to a stock purchase) guarantees the purchaser will not inherit any liability (so-called “successor liability”). This is not necessarily so with wage and hour liability, particularly if the purchaser merely continues…
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division issued a proposed rule on the fluctuating workweek method of pay. The proposal continues a regulatory saga started in 2008, and clarifies that payments in addition to the fixed salary are compatible with the fluctuating workweek method of compensation, and…
By: Alex Passantino
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division announced its long-awaited proposed rule related to the FLSA’s tip provisions. The rule would implement statutory changes passed in March 2018; it also would elevate certain WHD policy guidance into regulation.
The legislative changes come from the Tip Income Protection Act, which…
Seyfarth Synopsis: the 10th Circuit has held that the FLSA applies to workers in the marijuana industry.
Looks like at least some arguments seeking to dismiss FLSA wage claims under the guise that “cannabis is illegal under federal law” have gone up in smoke. The 10th Circuit created a…
