labor lawAdivision of labor law center

As predicted, the federal government extended the COBRA subsidy on March 2, 2010. The Temporary Extension Act of 2010 results in a continued COBRA premium subsidy to American workers who are unemployed through no fault of their own. In addition, the act extends the subsidy from 9 months to 15 months for many affected workers.

The COBRA subsidy extension applies to employees who are involuntarily terminated between September 1, 2008 and March 31, 2010.

Under a new provision of the COBRA subsidy, workers who are terminated involuntarily on or after March 2, 2010 are eligible if that termination follows a qualifying event that was a reduction of hours. The qualifying event must have occurred between September 2, 1008 and March 31, 2010. For example, if an employee’s hours were reduced in November 2009 and he is subsequently laid off after March 2, 2010, he will qualify for the COBRA premium reduction.

The current premium reduction lasts for 15 months and applies to employees who were laid off on or after February 17, 2009. Some of these employees have already had the COBRA subsidy for 9 months. (more…)

New York employers need to be aware of several recent changes in the Wage and Hour regulations, including rules regarding maintenance of uniforms, meals and lodging.

This comes on the heels of news that the New York Department of Labor reached a settlement on January 27, 2010 with a Queens supermarket for not paying grocery baggers at all. Apparently, the food store required baggers to work for tips only, without any wages.  When one employee complained that this was illegal, he was terminated.

The supermarket paid more than $300,000 in back wages to three baggers and reinstated the employee, under the terms of the settlement. 

“It continues to frustrate me how employers can continue to flaunt the law and simply not pay their workers. We are glad that the employer agreed to pay workers the wages they owe them, and to reinstate the worker they fired,” Labor Commissioner Smith said.

The wage and hour changes proposed by the wage board were (more…)

The New York Labor Commissioner recently issued a ruling that non-exempt employees must be paid an hourly rate. This law is in contrast to the federal FLSA and most state laws, which permit an employer to pay any worker (exempt or non-exempt) by salary, as long as applicable minimum wage and overtime laws are followed. It applies to almost every employer in New York.

Although this new ruling has not yet gone into effect, every New York employer should be aware of it. As soon as the Labor Commissioner finalizes regulations, they will be published in 10 New York newspapers. Thirty days after publication, the new rules will go into effect.

When that happens, only exempt employees can be paid on a salaried basis under New York law. Because the Labor Commissioner has not yet (more…)

Effective January 1, 2010 the tipped minimum wage for food service workers in New York increased to $4.75 per hour. Under the same regulations, on January 1, 2011 the tipped minimum wage will increase to $5.00 per hour.

Restaurant owners should be prepared for further increases in the state tipped minimum wage. The Labor Commissioner has said that these two increases are just the first step in increasing the tipped minimum wage to the same level as the minimum wage for non-tipped employees, currently $7.25.

Several states including Washington already require that tipped employees be paid the same minimum wage as other workers.

Under the new regulations, the Labor Commissioner also requires that New York employers must inform workers of the tip credit to be taken. If an employer neglects to notify employees, no credit is allowed. This requirement for employers covered under the federal minimum wage law has now been extended to employees covered by the New York state minimum wage law. For example, (more…)

A recent opinion letter issued by the Oklahoma Attorney General allows employers to require wage payment by direct deposit but not by payroll debit card.

This opinion letter overturns a former ruling, that Oklahoma employers could not require payment by direct deposit.

An Oklahoma employer may require that an employee accept payment of wages by direct deposit, under this new ruling. However, the employer cannot require that the employee use a certain bank for wage payment. The employee must be free to use a bank of his or her choice for payroll deposits.

If an Oklahoma employer had a policy allowing employees to receive (more…)