By: Andrew McKinley, Kyle Winnick & Alex Simon
Seyfarth Synopsis: This first part of a multi-part series explores the implications of the Department of Labor’s proposed independent contractor rule under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Specifically, it focuses on proposed changes to the control factor concerning legal, safety, contractual, and other similar requirements.
As we detailed here, on
Continue Reading DOL’s Proposed FLSA Independent Contractor Rule: Control—Part IBy: Annette Idalski, Kyle Winnick, A. Scott Hecker, and Ethan Goemann
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court held that highly-compensated employees paid solely on a day rate must meet the so-called “reasonable relationship test” to satisfy the salary basis requirement.
In Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt, the Supreme Court considered whether a day-rate employee earning
Continue Reading Supreme Court Holds That Highly-Compensated Employees Solely Paid a Day Rate Must Meet Reasonable Relationship TestBy: Scott Hecker and Scott Mallery
On this episode of the Policy Matters Podcast, Seyfarth Senior Counsel Scott Hecker and Counsel Scott Mallery discuss the Senate HELP Committee’s recent inability to advance U.S. DOL Wage and Hour Administrator nominee Jessica Looman out of committee, this time due to a procedural hiccup that will likely be remedied. The Scotts discuss what
Continue Reading Policy Matters Podcast – Episode 34: President’s Second Nominee for Wage and Hour Administrator Stuck in Committee…AgainBy: Noah Finkel and Kyle Petersen
Seyfarth Synopsis: The DOL has issued guidance to its staff – that might be relied upon by courts – that any break less than 20 minutes while working from home is compensable time, regardless of the reason for the break.
Especially because this post is being released on a Friday, chances are that you
Continue Reading Not Remotely Helpful: DOL Issues Guidance on Compensability of Teleworking BreaksBy: A. Scott Hecker and Noah A. Finkel
Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 4, 2023, the Biden Administration announced the release of its Fall 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. In connection with the Administration’s new regulatory agenda, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has a number of ambitious rulemakings on the horizon, including a
Continue Reading The Biden Administration Issued Its Latest Regulatory Agenda – What’s on Tap for DOL in 2023?By: Noah Finkel, Camille Olson, Scott Mallery, Andrew McKinley and Kevin Young
Seyfarth Synopsis: Today the U.S. Department of Labor issued its draft new interpretive regulation (or NPRM) attempting to define employee versus independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The NPRM jettisons an earlier attempt under the prior Administration to modernize and simplify how
Continue Reading Meet the New Interpretation, (Pretty Much the) Same as the Old Interpretation: the DOL Proposes Its Own Independent Contractor Definition for the FLSA
By Kevin Young, Noah Finkel, and Brett C. Bartlett
Seyfarth Synopsis: On December 10, 2021, the White House and U.S. Department of Labor confirmed their plan to propose new rules to increase the salary threshold for exempt employees under the FLSA and “modernize” the prevailing wage rules that apply to many federal government contractors and subcontractors. The rulemaking
Continue Reading On Deck for ’22: Exempt Salary Level Increases and Prevailing Wage Changes
By Zheyao Li and Kevin Young
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. DOL has suspended its “continuous workday” rule for employees working from home as a result of COVID-19. This development has important implications for how small businesses may schedule and compensate non-exempt employees working from home due to the pandemic.
The wave of new law, new guidance on that law, and
Continue Reading WFH is the New Black, Part 2: The DOL Presses Pause on the “Continuous Workday” Rule
Co-authored by Alex Passantino and Kevin Young
Seyfarth Synopsis: On April 1, 2019, the U.S. DOL announced a proposed rule to clarify joint employment under the FLSA. The rule would establish a four-factor balancing test for joint employer status. It also rejects various factors that have fueled recent litigation, e.g., a worker’s economic dependence on a potential joint employer, the potential employer’s business model, and its unexercised power over the worker.
This is the third proposed rule that the DOL has issued in a month’s time. Like the other proposals (concerning overtime exemptions and the regular rate of pay), this rule—if adopted—should provide welcome clarity for many businesses. This is particularly true for those most targeted by joint employment litigation, such as franchisors, staffing agencies, and businesses with subsidiaries or affiliates.
Authored by Cheryl Luce
Seyfarth Synopsis: If it becomes law, a new bill will expand the FLSA’s tip provisions into areas traditionally regulated by state law and create new areas of ambiguity that could be a breeding ground for yet more wage-hour litigation.
We have been covering the saga of a controversial 2011 DOL regulation that gave employees the right
Continue Reading Introducing the Tip Income Protection Act: Congress’s Misguided Attempt to Turn the FLSA Into a Wage Payment Law