Wednesday, February 20, 2008

What I'm Hearing...Wage and Hour Lawsuits

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been hearing more and more about wage and hour lawsuits. It seems the U.S. Department of Labor is stepping up its investigation of wage and hour complaints. Now, more than ever, it’s essential to make sure your FLSA exempt / non-exempt classifications, and associated job descriptions, are accurate and up to date. White collar positions including store managers, IT positions, and sales reps are the next wave of DOL investigation. In the past, traditional non-exempt positions have been the focus.

According to Fortune Small Business, key areas to examine are “executive assistant” positions, IT employees, pay docking practices, the impact of telecommuting on compensation, provision of comp time, and the use of stock options.

FLSA compliance has always been a thorny issue. While the new 2004 regulations helped in a variety of areas, compliance continues to vex HR professionals and their business line managers. Proactively updating your job descriptions and auditing your exemptions should help to prevent your organization from being targeted for lawsuits by employees and the DOL.

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