The Department of Labor (“DOL”) released an opinion letter addressing whether certain overtime payments based on an expected number of hours may be credited towards the amount of overtime pay owed under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and whether such overtime payments are excludable from the regular rate. The answer to both questions is yes.
The FLSA contains a statutory exclusion which permits an employer to exclude extra compensation provided at a premium rate. The FLSA further permits an employer to credit any payments excludable under the FLSA towards overtime pay owed under the FLSA.
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State Audit Finds Misuse of Funds by Former Grays Harbor Fire District 5 Chief | News |
The State Auditor's Office in December published its findings into the investigation of possible misuse of public funds by then Grays Harbor Fire District 5 Chief Dan Prater.
In its response to the audit, the fire district, headquartered in Elma, illustrated the steps it took immediately after the alleged misuse was discovered in March 2019 to guard against such misappropriations in the future.
The state audit report found that payroll misappropriations of $105,822 occurred between October 2016 and March 2019, with additional "questionable disbursements" made in March 2019.
Our view: Pandemic not the time to increase farm overtime | Editorial | auburnpub.com
New York Assemblyman Charles Barron, D-Brooklyn, speaks in 2019 in favor of a bill to extend labor rights to farmworkers.
A state Department of Labor wage board's recommendation to delay giving more overtime pay to farmworkers in New York may provide just the right amount of time to find a fair compromise.
As part of a package of reform bills that took effect in 2020, farm laborers were granted overtime pay for working more than 60 hours per week, and a board was formed to study the impacts of potentially lowering that number a bit closer to 40.
Trump Judge Writes Decision Granting Overtime Pay to Oil Company Supervisor Who Already Made More
Trump Fifth Circuit judge James Ho wrote a 2-1 decision ruling that an oil company supervisor who already made over $200,000 per year was also entitled to overtime pay. The December 2020 decision is Hewitt v Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc.
Michael Hewitt worked for two years for Helix Energy Solutions as a supervisor of other employees on an offshore oil rig. He earned over $200,000 per year, but his pay was calculated "using a daily rate" rather than via a regular salary. Hewitt accordingly claimed that he was also owed overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act whenever he worked more than 40 hours per week.
Not to change the topic here:
Martucci pleased with Farm Wage Board overtime decision - Mid Hudson News
ALBANY – State Senator Mike Martucci (R, New Hampton) said he is pleased that the state Farm Wage Board has decided to delay lowering the 60-hour mandatory overtime threshold for now.
The freshman lawmaker called the law that allows for the lowering the mandatory overtime limit flawed and said it would have devastated the state's agriculture industry.
"The way that the law was approved it gives binding to this unelected board to change it at their discretion, so really the 60-hour threshold was difficult enough for our farmers and lowering it would have only made the challenges greater. So, lowering it by any number would have been a big challenge," he said.
Trump DOL Issues Two More "Lame Duck" Opinion Letters
In any event, WHD opinion letters provide a "safe harbor" for employers for as long as they exist, so let's look at the two most recent ones.
In FLSA2020-19 , WHD tackles the compensability of home-to-office travel time for an employee who chooses to work from home for part of the day from the office for part of the day, with sufficient time in between those working periods to perform personal tasks.
The opinion letter gives two examples, both of which involve an employee with a one-hour commute to and from her office who normally works Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The employee performs no work during her commutes.
Expect A Pro-Worker DOL With Biden, Senate Democrats – InsuranceNewsNet
President-elect Joe Biden will likely name his Department of Labor nominee soon, bolstered by an apparent Democratic takeover of the Senate that will allow for a more liberal DOL.
That is likely to mean a much stronger pro-worker focus. Rules and legislation tackling overtime pay and minimum wage are much more of a reality with Democrats in control of the Senate.
Democrats sweeping both Senate races in Georgia frees up Biden to pick more left-leaning candidates for these controversial posts.
DOL Opinion Letters: Pay Calculations for Teleworkers
On the last day of 2020, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) ushered out the year with two new Opinion Letters. These may be the final two Opinion Letters of the Trump Administration and perhaps the last two for a while, depending on whether the Biden Administration continues the practice, reimplemented during the current administration, or abandons it, perhaps in favor of the informal administrator interpretation letters issued during the Obama Administration.
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Where is @BorisJohnson? We need further restrictions and national lockdown now. School closures are inevitable.… https://t.co/UNv8pk143G AngelaRayner (from Ashton-under-Lyne, England) Sun Jan 03 21:47:34 +0000 2021
Take $150 out your stimulus. Go get you a Star Destroyer. Now you own a business. Every time you crush a rebellion,… https://t.co/gXmlqKHRcQ EricHaywood (from Cylon-Occupied Caprica) Sat Jan 02 14:16:05 +0000 2021
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