On March 13, 2014, President Barack Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum aimed at revamping overtime eligibility rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq. (FLSA), particularly with respect to the exemptions for executive, administrative and professional employees. The president has called on the U.S. Department of Labor to “modernize and streamline” existing overtime regulations to be consistent with the intent of the FLSA and address the changing nature of the workplace.
While it may be well over a year before regulatory changes become effective, they will likely trigger more wage and hour scrutiny by the Labor Department and advocates for fair employment practices. With this recent activity as a backdrop, it is a good time to review obligations of employers under the FLSA. This month’s column addresses the protections afforded to employees, penalties for noncompliance and the joint employer, hot goods and successor theories of liability under the law.
