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.
Many employers who have been penalized for labor law violations never realized they were noncompliant. However, 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 many things, including benefits eligibility, minimum wage provisions, overtime pay eligibility, and workers’ compensation eligibility. Employers who misclassify are in jeopardy 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. Business owners who dock pay when a non-exempt employee leaves during the day are committing a punishable violation. Note that an employer can generally take other disciplinary actions.
3. Miscalculating Overtime Pay
Most workers should be paid time-and-a-half for time worked over 40 hours in a week, but employers 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 staff members 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 workers for all work performed. This means they cannot ask staff members 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 managers, employees, and business.
WorkforceHub includes TimeWorksPlus, TimeSimplicity, and TimeWorks Mobile. We’ve just added onboarding, benefits enrollment, performance reviews, and employee engagement! WorkforceHub is designed for busy employers like you who need to streamline scheduling, automate time and attendance tracking, maintain regulatory compliance, and reduce 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 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.
Kansas Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
Kansas does not have its own overtime laws and instead follows the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), requiring non-exempt employees—including certain salaried workers—to be paid 1.5 times their regular rate for hours worked over 40 per week, with employers allowed to mandate unlimited overtime as long as proper compensation is provided.
Alabama Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
Alabama 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, and allowing employers to mandate overtime while ensuring proper compensation.
North Carolina Overtime Laws - WorkforceHub
North Carolina adheres to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for overtime, requiring employers to pay 1.5 times the regular rate for hours worked over 40 per week, applies overtime pay to non-exempt employees—including certain salaried workers who do not meet exemption criteria—and allows employers to mandate overtime work.
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.
Wisconsin Scheduling & Predictive Scheduling Laws - WorkforceHub
The article explains that Wisconsin lacks specific predictive scheduling laws beyond federal regulations, meaning employers are not required to provide advance notice, minimum shift lengths, or compensation for last-minute schedule changes, resulting in flexible but potentially unpredictable work schedules for employees.