Some workplace crises blow up instantaneously, exploding onto the scene with immediacy and urgency that can take one's breath away. Wage and hour liability is different. It lurks below the surface, sometimes for years, before the problem is discovered and brought to management's attention.
The problem, of course, is that once the crisis hits, companies have little to defend themselves with unless they've been managing time-keeping procedures exceptionally well. If they haven't, the long arm of the law can stretch back to up to four years (depending on the state) to scrutinize paper and electronic records for unpaid overtime, missing meal and rest period premiums, and other violations in wage and hour practices. Likewise, such investigations often result in class-action lawsuits, which can be extremely time consuming and expensive to defend with hefty damage settlement demands and attorneys' fees.
There's no doubt about it—you want to keep wage and hour (i.e., time-keeping, overtime, employee classification, and rest and meal period adherence) compliance clean and tidy. Managers can be a particularly weak point; managing overtime properly can be a daunting task for many supervisors who may not be aware of the intricacies and traps that await them within the wage and hour world.
"There are a number of counterintuitive requirements and subtle nuances in wage and hour law, and a high level of diligence is needed to protect your organization from liability," said Christopher...
Host Jonathan Porter welcomes Husch Blackwell senior counsel Robert Hess to discuss a groundbreaking Ninth Circuit decision that expands False Claims Act exposure in the 340B drug pricing program. ...