wage and hour

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Seyfarth Synopsis:  Today the U.S. Department of Labor issued its final rule, attempting to define employee versus independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (the “Final Rule”).  The Final Rule jettisons an earlier attempt under the prior Administration to modernize and simplify how to determine who is an employee and who is a contractor by focusing…

Continue Reading Department of Labor Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractor Definition under the Fair Labor Standards Act

Co-authored by Alex Passantino and Kevin Young

On Tuesday, the Wage & Hour Division announced a new program for resolving violations of the FLSA without the need for litigation. The Payroll Audit Independent Determination program—or “PAID”—is intended to facilitate the efficient resolution of overtime and minimum wage claims under the FLSA. The program will be conducted for a six-month…
Continue Reading Tired of Waiting for FLSA Litigation? Meet PAID, WHD’s Pilot Program For Proactive Employers.

Co-authored by Howard M. Wexler and Robert S. Whitman

Seyfarth Synopsis: Governor Andrew Cuomo has directed the Commissioner of Labor to schedule public hearings to address the possibility of eliminating the tip credit. A tip credit allows an employer to pay less than minimum wage to employees who receive the bulk of their pay in customer tips.

As we…
Continue Reading NY Governor Signals “Tipping” Point Over Elimination of Minimum Wage Tip Credit

Authored By Alex Passantino

As we’ve reported previously, among the items the Department of Labor identified earlier this year in its Regulatory Agenda was a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) seeking to rescind portions of a 2011 rule that restricted tip pooling for employers who do not use the tip credit to satisfy their minimum wage obligations. On October…
Continue Reading Tip Credit Rule to White House

Co-authored by Brett Bartlett, Alex Passantino, and Kevin Young

Seyfarth Synopsis: On Thursday afternoon, a federal judge in Texas issued an order officially invalidating the U.S. Department of Labor’s 2016 overtime rule, which would have more than doubled the minimum salary level for most overtime-exempt employees. While the long awaited ruling brings a measure of closure for employers, …
Continue Reading Obama Overtime Rule Invalidated by Federal Court in Texas

Authored by Alex Passantino

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Wage & Hour Division announced its regulatory plan for the next year and it is less ambitious than some may have anticipated.  A request for information on the overtime rule and a proposal to rescind a limited tip credit regulation are all that is on the immediate horizon for employers.

Each spring and …
Continue Reading What’s on the Agenda? Tips and OT

Co-authored by Brett Bartlett, Alex Passantino, and Kevin Young

At last, the federal government has filed its reply brief in the Fifth Circuit concerning its appeal from a Texas district court’s order preliminarily enjoining the 2016 revisions to the FLSA’s executive, administrative, and professional exemptions. Because of the substantive and procedural complexities facing the Department of Labor…
Continue Reading Finally Briefed: DOL Files 5th Circuit Reply Defending its Authority to Set Salary Level for EAP Exemptions

iStock-649373572Authored by Katherine M. Smallwood

Seyfarth Synopsis: On May 8, 2017, Governor Nathan Deal signed a law expanding the reach of a pre-existing statute that prohibits Georgia localities from passing ordinances affecting worker pay in Georgia. The amendment is in line with a trend of states’ laws proactively limiting counties’ and cities’ abilities to promulgate ordinances that exceed worker …
Continue Reading Georgia Governor Signs Law Preempting Predictive Scheduling Ordinances

Co-authored by Brett C. Bartlett and Samuel Sverdlov

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Southern District of New York recently held that parties may not settle FLSA claims without court approval through an offer of judgment pursuant to Rule 68 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Background: Rule 68

Under Rule 68, a party defending a claim can make an “offer of…
Continue Reading SDNY Pancakes Parties’ Attempt to Bypass Cheeks: Requires Approval of Rule 68 Settlement

Co-authored by Kyle A. Petersen and Molly C. Mooney

Seyfarth Synopsis: If Congress fails to pass a long-term funding bill, we could be facing a federal government shutdown with no money flowing to fund non-essential services. While it seems the crisis may be averted for now — with a short-term spending bill that would keep the lights on for another …
Continue Reading Budget Blues: Planning for a Possible Government Shutdown