The payment of wages to employees for their work is a highly regulated activity and requires a business to comply with numerous federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Given the complexity of the wage and hour regulatory scheme, litigation and governmental enforcement actions in this area have become increasingly common. Among the hot issues that plaintiffs and regulators focus on are the methods by which employers are required to compensate employees and independent contractors and the extent to which employees are entitled to overtime compensation.
Our attorneys have many years of experience advising employers and employees on wage and hour issues, particularly those involving independent contractors and the classification of employees for purposes of overtime compensation. We provide advice and counseling to employers on how to create and implement fully compliant pay policies, and how to remain maintain that compliance in the constantly evolving wage and hour regulatory scheme. Additionally, our employment lawyers have litigated these issues in state and federal courts in class/collective actions as well as in cases initiated by individuals.
Experience
- Overtime, minimum wage, and pay deductions
- Employee exempt/non-exempt classification and independent contractor/employee classification
- Off-the-clock work (meal break, preliminary/post-liminary work, on-call time, travel time)
- Use of a contingent/temporary workforce
- Work-from home and remote workforce arrangements
- Neutral pay practices (rounding, regular rate of pay calculation, etc.)
- FLSA and FMLA compliance
- Defending employers in federal and state courts against collective and class actions as well as individual cases
- Defending employers in cases brought under state wage payment laws
- Litigation avoidance counseling and support pre- and post-trial
- Defending employers in DOL and state wage and hour investigations