President Trump has nominated Eugene Scalia, son of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, to head the United States Department of Labor. Scalia will replace Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta, who stepped down amid controversy. Mr. Scalia will have
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U.S. Department of Labor Issues Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Joint Employment
On April 1, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
The Department is proposing to revise and clarify the responsibilities of employers and joint
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New Overtime Rule (Again!)
The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has finally announced its proposed new rule for overtime eligibility under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The DOL’s Thursday announcement proposes to increase the salary threshold to $35,308 per year, an increase from $455
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Key Takeaways from the Recent Overtime Rule Listening Sessions
The Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) held public listening sessions on October 30, 2018 to gather views on the Part 541 white collar exemption regulations, the 2016 “Overtime Rule.” Sessions were held in Atlanta, GA, Seattle, WA, Kansas City, MO, Denver, CO, Providence, RI, and Washington DC. A review of the actual transcripts reveals that many different interests presented comments, including human resource professionals, small business, nonprofits, employees, employers, attorneys, and large businesses. Full renditions of the transcripts by city can be found here.
The DOL posed these questions for addressing at the Listening Sessions:
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DOJ and DOL Combine Forces to Combat Employment Discrimination Against U.S. Workers
On July 31, 2018, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Labor (DOL) signed an agreement that sets guidelines for inter-agency collaboration to combat suspected employer non-compliance with immigration laws. The agencies have agreed to share resources, including records, and education and training where necessary, and refer cases to one another when an agency learns of employer non-compliance.
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Using Offer Letters Correctly
South Carolina is an employment at will state. This means that, absent a written contract guaranteeing employment, employers are free to terminate employees at any time, without notice, for any reason (so long as that reason does not violate another law of course!). Conversely, employees are generally free to quit at any time without recourse.
So, most companies in South Carolina use the initial offer letter to convey the terms and conditions of an employee’s employment. The offer letter typically contains items such as job duties, hours, pay rate, and general benefits information. However, what is legally required to be provided? What are some optional items that should be considered?
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Congress Addresses Who Can Share Tips
The 2018 federal appropriations bill signed into law on March 23rd includes an addition to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) stating that “[a]n employer may not keep tips received by its employees for any purposes, including allowing managers or supervisors to keep any portion of employees’ tips, regardless of whether or not the employer takes a tip credit.” The amendment also nullifies certain regulations issued by the Department of Labor in 2011, including regulations which prohibited an employer from using an employee’s tips as part of an invalid tip pool even where the employer was paying the employees the full minimum wage without utilizing a tip credit.
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Are Unpaid Interns Employees Under the FLSA?
On January 5, 2018, the United States Department of Labor announced that, going forward, it would utilize the “primary beneficiary” test for determining whether interns are employees under the FLSA, consistent with recent rulings from appellate courts. Its updated Fact
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Can the President Nullify the Affordable Care Act by Issuing Executive Orders?
President Trump issued an Executive Order yesterday which purports to suggest three avenues for offering health insurance at a decreased cost to small employers and consumers for the overall goal of reducing healthcare costs on the grounds that the Affordable
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Federal Judge in Texas Issues Final Ruling Striking Down New Overtime Rule
By now, employers are certainly well aware that on November 22, 2016, a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction that effectively prevented the implementation and enforcement of the new Department of Labor (“DOL”) regulations regarding the exemptions from
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