To help multi-state employers determine the minimum amount they must pay non-exempt employees, our chart below summarizes state and local increases this year. (Unless otherwise indicated, the following increases are effective January 1, 2019.)
This chart is intended to discuss rate changes that affect employers generally, and may not necessarily cover all industry-specific rate changes.
Join us at 3:00 pm Thursday, January 24 for our California Employment & Compensation Update in our new Los Angeles office. A range of topics will be covered during our program which will begin with a panel discussion addressing emerging trends in advancing corporate Diversity & Inclusion goals, followed by your choice of updates on
With thanks to Barbara Klementz for authoring this post.
Gender pay gap and pay equity are big discussion topics for companies around the world as more and more countries enact laws intended to close the gender pay gap and as case law develops involving discrimination claims related to pay equity. Beyond strictly legal obligations, many companies also face shareholder and employee pressure for increased transparency around diversity and gender pay.
Internal pay audits are rarely enjoyable. Depending on the scope, these audits can be complex and require detailed analysis. However, in the current legal climate, an internal audit can be extremely valuable and greatly reduce, or even eliminate, potential liability for wage and hour claims as well as pay equity claims. As previously reported on this blog, increased scrutiny into pay equity discrimination, changes in EEO-1 reporting requirements, the Department of Labor’s joint employment efforts, and the updated FLSA exemption rules continue to place companies at greater risk of government audits, fines, and lawsuits.
Many employers may have already reviewed and updated their policies in anticipation of the changes to the “white collar” FLSA exemptions, which go into effect on December 1, 2016. But if your company has not yet done so, or to the extent you have not conducted a more comprehensive internal audit, your company should strongly consider doing so as soon as possible for several reasons.
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As discussed in a prior post, the Department of Labor’s new overtime regulations increase the weekly minimum salary threshold an employee must be paid to maintain exempt status under the FLSA’s “white collar” exemptions. The Final Rule, which becomes effective December 1, 2016, could affect up to 4.2 million employees according to DOL estimates. But an employer hoping to classify its employees as exempt need not meet the new threshold entirely through base salary. Instead, the new regulations allow employers to use bonuses, commissions, and incentive payments to satisfy up to 10% of the minimum salary threshold.
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So you’ve determined the employees who will be included in the layoff and determined any WARN obligations . . . now what? While its often brushed aside as an administrative exercise, employee final pay is a significant action that is full of traps for the unwary. Governed by the Texas Payday Law, failure to properly provide final pay can subject a company to civil liability of up to $1,000 per violation, and, if intent is shown, criminal liability. Fortunately, the Texas Payday Law provides guidance on how to handle a number of common questions regarding final paychecks.
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It’s been more than a year since the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs issued groundbreaking new rules related to Section 503 and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act, yet the Agency shows no signs of slowing down. In the past several months, the OFCCP has issued proposed rules on hot topics such as pay discrimination and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
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