Wage & Hour

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The Department of Labor (DOL) routinely investigates and audits employers to ensure compliance with a variety of important labor and employment laws. Historically, wage and hour (overtime) compliance under the Fair Labor Standards Act has been the most common subject of the DOL’s enforcement efforts.

Fueled by additional resources, funding and staffing, the DOL is increasing its enforcement efforts both in terms of frequency and scope. This concerning trend means that employers can expect an increase in the number of investigations and that such investigations, once initiated, will cover a broader range of compliance issues and dig deeper into those issues under review. In this regard, our clients are reporting that, in addition to typical wage and hour issues, expanded DOL inquiries as a matter of course now include review of other laws, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act, and even the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. It is also common for DOL investigations to “spread,” resulting in the inquiry ultimately moving into areas other than the initial issue under review.
Continue Reading Investigations/Audits of Employers by DOL Increase and Expand in Scope

For Pennsylvania employers, 2012 was another eventful year in the world of wage and hour law. Even in the absence of new federal legislation, a number of noteworthy developments occurred at both the federal and state levels, confirming that wage and hour compliance remains a moving target for employers. This complimentary white paper summarizes ten of the more significant wage and hour developments in 2012 for Pennsylvania employers…
Continue Reading Top Ten Wage & Hour Developments in 2012 for Pennsylvania Employers

In the wage and hour realm, even the most knowledgeable Pennsylvania employers often are unaware of potential compliance pitfalls presented by state law. Like the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (“PMWA”) contains overtime and minimum wage requirements applicable to Pennsylvania employers. The PMWA is similar, but not identical, to the FLSA, and compliance with the FLSA does not always guarantee compliance with this state law.

Earlier this week, a federal court in Pennsylvania highlighted another area where the requirements of the FLSA and PMWA arguably differ, and therefore, could lead to problems for the unwary employer.
Continue Reading Federal Court Holds That FLSA’s “Fluctuating Workweek” Method of Overtime Compensation Violates PA Law

As in most types of class-based litigation, plaintiffs in FLSA collective actions typically seek certification of as broad a class as possible. As the number of potential class members grows, so does the size of the employer’s potential liability and the plaintiffs’ leverage to obtain a large and lucrative settlement. One way to broaden the class size is to include employees of the employer’s sister companies in the class, under the theory that the sister companies’ parent company qualifies as the plaintiffs’ “joint employer.”

In the context of an FLSA collective action, the Third Circuit recently considered and established the test to be used to determine whether a parent company qualifies as the “joint employer” of its subsidiaries’ employees under the FLSA.
Continue Reading Third Circuit Clarifies “Joint Employer” Test Under FLSA

The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) imposes a general requirement that employers pay overtime to non-exempt employees for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per workweek. Section 7(j) of FLSA provides, however, that certain employers in the health care industry can rely on the “8/80” method of overtime calculation instead of the standard 40 hour workweek approach.

A 2010 decision by the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas called in to question whether the 8/80 method was permissible under the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act. On June 28, 2012, however, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett was presented with legislation, seemingly in response to the court’s decision, that would amend the PMWA to permit use of the 8/80 method by health care institutions in the Commonwealth.
Continue Reading Proposed Legislation To Reverse Court Decision, Permit Pennsylvania Health Care Institutions to Rely on 8/80 Overtime Method