In Massachusetts, there's now a new definition of what's considered a "wait staff employee" in the restaurant industry, thanks to HB 5250. A wait staff employee is a waiter/waitress, bus person or someone working in a quick-service restaurant who prepares or serves food or beverages as part of a team of counter staff. The definition [...]
Employer: Supermercado Lomabonita, St. Paul MN Business: Grocery store Law broken: Overtime provision of the Fair Labor Standards Act Type of violation: The employer didn't combine hours employees worked at multiple store sites during the week, meaning they weren't paid overtime for hours worked over 40. In addition, some workers were incorrectly classified as exempt [...]
Why it's key to encourage proper timekeeping practices Supervisors must make sure employees are following your timekeeping policies as they're written. Even if the policy you have on paper is compliant with the law, a regular pattern of the policy being ignored or discouraged can work against your company in any disputes. One employer learned [...]
Dispute over whether payment was actually discretionary If a bonus is meant to be discretionary, it's key that its terms meet all the requirements set by the Department of Labor (DOL). Otherwise, employers could run into problems. One employer claimed it gave its workers a discretionary bonus, but the circumstances behind it suggested otherwise. Was [...]
