By Ryan McCoy, Alex Simon, and Cary Burke
Seyfarth Synopsis: Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that a crane mechanic who performed some work on a truck chassis came within the purview of the Motor Carrier Act exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act, irrespective of the percentage of time he spent performing
Continue Reading An Uplifting Motor Carrier Act Exemption Victory At The Fifth CircuitBy: 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: 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 Breaks
As the FLSA landscape continues to evolve, Seyfarth’s national Wage and Hour Litigation practice group is pleased to share our observations and analysis of the 2022 FLSA litigation trends as well as our forward-looking predictions for 2023. Given FLSA litigation trends over the past decade or so, we anticipate that the volume, locations, and substance of filings in 2023 will
Continue Reading Now Available! 2022 FLSA Litigation Metrics & TrendsBy: 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 Ethan Goemann and Noah Finkel
Employers have had to quickly pivot in numerous ways to keep their workplaces operating since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. One such way the workplace changed is through the introduction of COVID-19 screening tests for employees before they enter their employer’s place of business. Among other questions this spawned is whether such time
Continue Reading Courts Begin Ruling on Compensability of Covid-19 Screening TimeBy: 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 Lennon B. Haas, Kyle Petersen, and Kevin M. Young
Seyfarth Synopsis: Though it may sound esoteric, the question of whether “last mile” drivers fall within the Federal Arbitration Act’s transportation worker exemption bears tremendous consequence. If they are exempt, they can’t be compelled to arbitrate under the FAA. If they are not exempt, the answer reverses. In
Continue Reading Eleventh Circuit Clears the Road to Arbitration for Last-Mile Drivers
By Kevin M. Young and Scott P. Mallery
Seyfarth Synopsis. Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate have reintroduced a bill to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 for virtually all non-exempt workers. While the “Fight For Fifteen” has made several trips to Congress before, the circumstances are much different this time around. While the proposed law likely won’t
Continue Reading The Fight For $15 Returns to Congress