The Employer’s Wage and Hour Advisor

On October 13, 2022, the United States Department of Labor (the “DOL”) published a new proposed rule to clarify who is an independent contractor under federal wage and hour law (the “Proposed Rule”). The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) protects workers against unfair employment practices by requiring employers to provide certain benefits and protections to employees. Independent contractors are not employees under the FLSA. As such, employers that misclassify workers as independent contractors may wrongfully deny workers of benefits and protections under the FLSA and other laws.

On May 9, 2022, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments regarding the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Dual Jobs Final Rule (the “New Rule”), which regulates when employers may take a tip credit against their employees’ wages under federal law.  Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employees who “regularly and customarily” receive tips need not be paid the full minimum wage in the form of hourly wage payments.  Instead, employers may take a “tip credit” against their minimum wage obligations, and pay tipped employees an hourly rate as low as $2.13 per hour (under federal law).  Whether the tip credit applies depends on the amount of time employees spend performing “tipped work” versus “non-tipped work.”  The 80/20 rule is a historic DOL guideline to assist employers in making such determinations; however, it has been hotly debated over recent years.

On January 13, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced the final rule that will be used to determine joint employer status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The final rule is expected to become effective on March 16, 2020. 

On October 24, 2019, Governor Gretchen Whitmer directed the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity to begin the rulemaking process to potentially raise the salary level for overtime exempt classifications in Michigan.  The Governor’s press release did not indicate what salary level should be proposed in the rulemaking.   

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has released new regulations governing the exempt status of executive, administrative and professional employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), also known as the “white collar” exemptions. Under the FLSA, an employee is exempt from overtime pay only if he or she performs certain duties and earns at least a set minimum salary.

For the first time in over 50 years, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has proposed updates to the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) “regular rate of pay” regulations. Specifically, the DOL published a proposed rule that clarifies the types of pay and benefits employers must include when determining a nonexempt employee’s overtime pay rate. While this proposed rule has not become final or effective as of yet, if implemented, the update could provide employers with significant relief from inadvertent overtime miscalculations. 

The wait is over. Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) released its proposed rule that would amend the regulations governing the exempt status of executive, administrative and professional employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), also known as the “white collar” exemptions.