Which FLSA Law Did You Break Today?
The article outlines common violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that employers often unknowingly commit—such as misclassifying employees, improperly docking pay from exempt employees, miscalculating overtime, paying below minimum wage due to deductions, and requiring off-the-clock work—emphasizing the importance of compliance to avoid significant penalties and highlighting the complexity of adhering to federal, state, and local labor laws.
Many business owners who have been penalized for labor law violations never realized they were noncompliant. But ignorance is no excuse. Here are common FLSA violations to avoid:
1. Misclassifying Employees
Any employer who fails to follow Department of Labor (DOL) rules regarding classification is risking significant penalties. Employee classification affects a host of things including benefits eligibility, minimum wage standards, overtime pay eligibility, and workers’ compensation eligibility. Employers who misclassify are at risk of state and federal penalties and should consult the comprehensive DOL classification rules.
2. Docking Pay From An Exempt Employee
An employee who is exempt from the overtime provision has other rights under the FLSA. One of these is being paid for an entire day even when working less. Employers who dock pay when a non-exempt worker leaves during the day are committing a punishable violation. Note that an employer can generally take other disciplinary actions.
3. Miscalculating Overtime Pay
Most employees should be paid time-and-a-half for time worked over 40 hours in a week, but business owners continue to violate this law, even though it has been around for decades.
4. Minimum Wage Violations
Two Walt Disney companies were required to pay 3.8 million to workers for wage hour violations that included allowing hourly rates to fall below minimum wage due to paycheck deductions for uniforms.
5. Off-The-Clock Non-Paid Work
Employers must pay their staff members for all work performed. This means they cannot ask employees to perform work off the clock. This was another offense in the Disney case mentioned previously.
At Swipeclock we understand how time-consuming it can be to ensure compliance with FLSA provisions, not to mention other laws that affect the workplace such as ACA and PBJ. Employers are also subject to local and state laws regulating minimum wage, overtime, family leave, predictive scheduling, and extra hours for part-time employees.
Business owners need a powerful, yet easy-to-use Workforce Management system that includes smartly-designed compliance features. WorkforceHub has dedicated compliance tools that help you comply with DOL regulations without having to hire more HR staff. Avoid fines, store records for verification, and reduce your risk of a wage dispute.
Swipeclock offers WorkforceHub, the unified Human Resources portal that makes it easy to optimize the performance of your supervisors, employees, and organization.
WorkforceHub includes TimeWorksPlus, TimeSimplicity, and TimeWorks Mobile. We’ve just added onboarding, benefits enrollment, performance reviews, and employee engagement! WorkforceHub is created for busy employers like you who need to streamline scheduling, automate time and attendance tracking, maintain regulatory compliance, and decrease labor costs.
We can get you up and running with WorkforceHub immediately. Contact us today to request a demo.
Or are you interested in becoming a reseller? Check out the Swipeclock partner advantage now.
Related
Which Labor Law Did You Break Today?
The article outlines common Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) violations employers often unknowingly commit—such as misclassifying employees, improperly docking pay from exempt employees, miscalculating overtime, violating minimum wage laws through improper deductions, and requiring unpaid off-the-clock work—emphasizing the importance of compliance to avoid significant federal and state penalties.
New Mexico Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
New Mexico adheres to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for overtime laws, requiring employers to pay 1.5 times the regular rate for hours worked over 40 per week to non-exempt employees—including certain salaried workers who do not meet exemption criteria—and while employers can mandate overtime, they must compensate employees accordingly.
Alabama Minimum Wage Laws - WorkforceHub
Alabama does not have its own minimum wage laws and instead follows the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour set in 2009, with no state or local variations, automatic annual increases, or industry-specific rates, and no scheduled updates unless federal or state legislation changes.
Arizona Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
Arizona follows federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime laws, requiring non-exempt employees—including hourly workers and salaried employees who do not meet exemption criteria such as earning at least $684 per week and performing executive, administrative, or professional duties—to be paid 1.5 times their regular rate for hours worked over 40 in a workweek, and employers can mandate overtime work but must compensate accordingly.
Nebraska Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
Nebraska follows federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) overtime laws without additional state-specific rules, requiring employers to pay non-exempt employees, including certain salaried workers who do not meet exemption criteria, 1.5 times their regular pay for hours worked over 40 per week, allowing employers to mandate overtime without a maximum hour limit as long as proper overtime compensation is provided.
Mississippi Minimum Wage Laws - WorkforceHub
Mississippi does not have its own minimum wage laws and instead follows the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour established in 2009, with no state-specific updates, industry-specific rates, or municipal variations, meaning all employers statewide must comply with the federal standard unless exempt.