Skip to main content

What I've Been Reading This Week


Tough to narrow down some of the articles I wanted to post this week.  One of the more interesting reads came from the article about potential issues with off the clock work by non-exempt employees.  This is an issue that could certainly become more prevalent in the coming years, especially with more and more access to work e-mails and databases from smartphones, tablets, etc.

As always, below are a few articles that caught my eye this week.


Important Deadlines to Keep in Mind For California's Paid Sick Leave Law

Another good article from Anthony Zaller; this time in relation to some key deadlines that California employers should keep in mind in regard to California's Paid Sick Leave Law.  While some of the deadlines have already passed, there are a few coming up at the start of July that employers should note.  


Workplace Bullying Laws Becoming More Prevalent In US

Minding the Workplace has a very well written note on the increasing number of workplace bullying laws that are starting to emerge across the country.  While over 30 states and territories have considered passing a variation of the Healthy Workplace Bill since 2013, the article notes Fulton County (in Georgia), Tennessee, California, and Utah have all successfully passed variations of the workplace bullying law over the past few years.  It would certainly be interesting to come back in a few years and see where else these laws have succeeded in being passed.


The Trouble With Off The Clock Work

Stephanie Hammerwold has a good article on the potential issues that arise with off the clock work by non-exempt employees.  Oftentimes, especially in today's workplace, workers have phones or access to company e-mails in which work can be done once they leave the office for the day.  Issues can arise when these non-exempt employees are working off the clock, and doing work that constitutes more than "de minimis" time.  


A Look at the Most Targeted Industries for Governmetn Wage & Hour Audits

The California Employment Law Report put out a very well researched article on the most targeted industries for government wage and hour audits, including which industries in California typically get the most attention.  The "usual suspects" are on the list, including restaurants, car washes, and agricultural employers.  Perhaps the most useful comments in the article is the suggestion to employers in these industries that they take steps to go above and beyond to ensure compliance, as they are already operating under a "bad actor presumption."

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

NLRB: Discussion Among Employees About Tip Pooling is Protected Concerted Activity

  This Advice Memorandum from the National Labor Relations Board’s Associate General Counsel, Jayme Sophir, addressed whether employees which discussed and complained about tip pooling at work constituted protected concerted activity. In relevant part, an employer in New York operated a chain of steakhouses.  While tip pooling was in place at these steakhouses, some of the employees objected to it on the grounds that it was not transparent and improperly divided tips among the workers.  Employees were told not to complain or talk to each other about the tip pool and were told that doing so would endanger their jobs.  Despite the employer later attempting to provide some clarity as to how the tips were being divided, rancor still existed among some employees.  At one point, the employees were told by a general manager that some employees that had been talking about the tip pool were “cleared out” and the employer would continue to do so. In the Advice Memorandum, it was noted that emplo

Happening Tomorrow: Connecticut’s Minimum Wage Increases

For those employers and employees alike in Connecticut, mark your calendars as tomorrow, the minimum wage rate increases in the state from $13/hour to $14/hour. This wage hike comes after Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont had signed Public Act 19-4 into law in 2019 which progressively raised the state’s hourly minimum wage rate every year for five years.  In fact, next year, the hourly wage rate will top out at $15/hour.  Beginning in January of 2024, the hourly wage rate will be indexed to the employment cost index. For additional information:   https://portal.ct.gov/Office-of-the-Governor/News/Press-Releases/2022/06-2022/Governor-Lamont-Reminds-Residents-That-Minimum-Wage-Is-Scheduled-To-Increase-on-Friday

What I’ve Been Reading This Week

A few years ago, I remember when the “Fight for $15” movement was taking off around the country.  Lo and behold, it appears that a $15/hour minimum wage is not the stopping point, which should be no surprise.  As the below article notes, New York is aggressively moving to ramp up hourly wage rates even higher.  While all the  below articles are worth a read, I called particular attention to that one. As always, below are a couple article that caught my eye this week. Disney World Workers Reject Latest Contract Offer Late last week, it was announced that workers at Disney World had rejected the most recent contract offer from the company, calling on their employer to do better.  As Brooks Barnes at The New York Times writes, the unions that represent about 32,000 workers at Disney World reported their members resoundingly rejected the 5 year contract offer which would have seen workers receive a 10% raise and retroactive increased back pay.  While Disney’s offer would have increased pa