For years now, healthcare employers have been particularly attractive targets when it comes to wage and hour compliance actions. Not only is the industry one of the largest in the country, there are some issues unique to healthcare that make it challenging to stay in 100% compliance – and therefore render it prone to costly missteps. This Insight will provide a list of the seven biggest wage and hour landmines for healthcare employers and then offer a suggested blueprint for avoiding them.
Why is Compliance So Important?
Before we examine the landmines to avoid, it’s important to understand the ramifications of noncompliance. First and foremost, class action and collective action lawsuits have been a popular tool of plaintiff’s lawyers – particularly when aimed at healthcare employers. When sued by employees, employers face the prospect of paying back wages, liquidated damages up to 100% of the amount of back wages, and the employees’ attorney’s fees and costs. The potential liability for lawsuits seeking minimum wages or overtime pay can quickly skyrocket when many employees are drawn into one lawsuit and these damages are multiplied many times over.
In addition to the risks presented by costly private lawsuits, the federal government has been very active in investigating healthcare employers for wage and hour compliance under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has targeted healthcare as a “high violation industry,”...
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