Archive for November 30, 2019

According to the US Department of Labor, you could qualify for overtime pay if you earn less than $684 per week when its updated overtime exemption rule goes into effect on January 1, 2020.  This past September, the DOL introduced the final earnings threshold for the FLSA’s administrative, executive, and professional employee overtime exemptions. These employee classifications encompass white-collar workers who receive a lucrative yearly salary rather than an hourly wage and exercise independent decision-making in their position.  The new

Pregnancy discrimination in the workplace occurs when a female employee or job applicant is treated less favorably due to pregnancy, childbirth, or medical complications arising from pregnancy or childbirth. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 forbids employers from discriminating against pregnant women in the workplace. This discrimination ban includes all aspects of employment, including but not limited to, pay, layoffs, firing, hiring, and health insurance. From Walmart to Wall Street, this type of discrimination is rampant among America’s biggest industries.

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The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) mandates employers to pay workers overtime (time and one-half) for all time worked over 40 hours in a workweek.  However, there are a handful of exceptions where overtime laws do not apply to certain types of employees. These workers, known as “exempt” employees, are not entitled to overtime regardless of how many hours they work. The type of work you do and the amount of money that you get paid determines whether or not

Over 2,500 employees of the City of San Diego are suing their employer for unpaid overtime wages. The city miscalculated overtime rates because the city gives all employees a cash payment to pay for health insurance. A federal court ruled that these payments should be included in an employee’s regular salary when determining their overtime rates. Therefore, when calculating overtime rates, employers can no longer use the usual hourly rate of pay multiplied by one and a half method. Now,

Account managers oversee the relationship between a company and its clients to foster long term business partnerships.  They work at advertising, law, financial, government or retail companies. Account executives are the liaison between the client and a company’s other departments such as sales, graphics, and marketing.  They streamline customer communications and advocate for the client’s long term and short term goals. Many employers misclassify Account Managers and Account Executives as overtime-exempt workers despite the fact that their primary duties and

Merrill Lynch recently settled a class action lawsuit from 51 employees who claimed to have never been paid overtime wages. The employees were responsible for reviewing broker emails. These compliance employees were allegedly misclassified as exempt from overtime. Therefore, they were never paid time and a half their usual rate when they worked any hours over 40. The employees were scheduled to work from 8:30 to 5:30, but they regularly worked longer hours and from home. Under the Fair Labor

Age discrimination occurs when an employee or job candidate is treated less favorably on the basis of his or her age. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) outlaws age discrimination in the workplace. The ADEA protects workers who are aged 40 or older. Age discrimination can still occur when the discriminator is also over the age of 40. With Baby Boomers getting older, this type of discrimination is becoming more common than ever. 1 out of 5 workers between

A non-compete agreement is a contract that restricts an employee from working for a competitor during the employment period and for some time after its conclusion.  It is typically presented to you on your first day of work, in a promotion offer, or alongside a severance package. Non-compete lawsuits have tripled since 2000–a fact that companies claim is only natural in an economy that is based on knowledge more than on manual labor. As a result, non-competes, which were once

The U.S. Department of Labor has recently stated that live-in superintendents must earn overtime wages from their employers according to federal law. These employees are advised to keep personal records of all hours worked. Live-in superintendents should earn time and a half their usual rate of pay for any hours worked over 40 in a given workweek. 

Conflicting federal and state laws

There has been recent confusion on whether conflicting federal or state laws apply to live-in superintendents. Under New York’s state

The former CEO of a start-up company providing shared office spaces called WeWork has been accused of pregnancy discrimination by his former Chief of Staff, Medina Bardhi.  Adam Neumann, the company’s “charismatic” and “highly impulsive” founder, was ousted from WeWork after a failed attempt to take it public this past September.  Bardhi’s allegations in her federal complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) are not exceptional or isolated. Numerous court filings and accusations from female workers depict a company