Reporting Time Pay Varies By State

February 18th, 2011 Posted by Amelia

During inclement weather, many offices and businesses will close early. While last week’s post examined payment when the business is closed or remains open all day, different rules apply when the employer opts to close the workplace early.

 

Many states have reporting pay laws that guarantee an employee payment for a number of hours when the employee reports for a . In those states, even if the employee works only 5 minutes, or reports to work but does no work at all, the employee is entitled to a minimum payment.

 

There is no requirement for reporting pay under law. The FLSA or Fair Standards Act requires only that employees be paid for time worked.

 

Laws vary from state to state, but many times reporting pay is not required if the employer made a good-faith effort to inform the employee in advance that the business would be closed or that the employee’s schedule has been changed.  Many states also exempt employers from reporting time pay when a business is closed due to an act of God, as when a tornado or flood destroys the building.

 

According to SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, seven states plus the have reporting time pay laws that affect adults: California, Massachusetts, , New Hampshire, , and Rhode Island. has a reporting time pay that applies to minors only.

 

A brief summary of reporting time pay laws by state: (more…)

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Connecticut Minimum Wage Increase

January 12th, 2009 Posted by Derrick

The Connecticut minimum wage went up from $7.65 an hour to $8.00 an hour on , 2009. That represents a hike of 35 cents per hour.

 

In Connecticut, the minimum is not linked to increases in the cost of living, as it is in some other states. Instead, it is voted as part of state law.

 

Some of the states where the minimum wage follows the inflation rate are Washington, , Vermont, and Florida.  By contrast, New Mexico, like , increases its minimum wage rate by statute. In New Mexico, the increased from $6.50 to $7.50 an hour on January 1, 2009, a hike of $1 per hour – by far the highest of the new year.

 

As in many other states, administrative, executive, and professional employees are under the Connecticut state and minimum wage laws. The relevant law in this case is Section 31-60-14,15,16 of the Administrative Regulations.

 

There is also an exception under the for minors working in agriculture or government. They are entitled to a reduced minimum wage that amounts to $6.80 per hour. In other words, they are only entitled to 85% of the state’s minimum wage. Minors working (more…)

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2009 Connecticut Minimum Wage is $8.00

December 12th, 2008 Posted by Jolie

The Connecticut will by 35 cents from $7.65 to $8.00 per hour on , 2009.

 

The Connecticut minimum wage increase is statutory, meaning it was voted as part of laws, rather than being a cost-of-living increase. A number of states, including Florida, Vermont, Washington and Oregon increase the each year to adjust for inflation. does not.

 

The is being increased by statute in New Mexico, as well as Connecticut. In New Mexico, the minimum wage will go from $6.50 to $7.50 per hour on January 1, 2009.

 

The Connecticut minimum wage will increase again, from $8.00 to $8.25 per hour, on January 1, 2010.

 

A little-known provision of permits (more…)

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Connecticut Minimum Wage Increase Vetoed By Governor

May 29th, 2008 Posted by Amelia

In a surprise move on May 27, vetoed a bill that would have increased the beginning in January 2009.

 

The unexpected veto to House Bill 5105 by Governor M. Jodi Rell kills a plan to raise the from the current level of $7.65 per hour to $8.00 in 2009 and $8.25 in 2010. A related act, Senate Bill 55, that would have increased the , was also vetoed.

 

The Connecticut bill passed both the House and Senate with large majorities. The vote was 106 to 45 for the bill in the House. The Senate passed the proposed by more than a 2-to-1 margin, with 25 for the measure and only 11 votes against it.

 

It’s entirely possible that the Governor’s veto will be overturned by the legislature. In order to overturn the Governor’s veto, proponents of the bill would require 101 votes in the House and 24 votes in the Senate. If the General Assembly considers this measure in a special session, and there are no defectors, they will overrule the veto. (more…)

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Connecticut Company to Pay $1 Million in Back Wages

July 16th, 2007 Posted by Amelia

A North Stonington, substance abuse facility has been ordered to pay more than $1 million in back to satisfy a lawsuit filed by the U.S. . In the suit, the U.S. claims that Stonington Behavioral Health Inc. failed to pay 143 employees for the time they worked, under the Fair Standards Act or FLSA.

In addition, the suit also named Stonington Behavioral Health, Inc.’s parent companies, Universal Health Services of Pennsylvania and UHS of Delaware, Inc. The violations occurred at the Stonington Institute rehab facility.

An investigation by the U.S. of Labor’s and Hour Division uncovered underpayments to more than one hundred employees who worked with substance abuse patients. The employees lived in the company’s “sober houses” where recovering patients were housed. According to investigators, the employees were regularly required to work additional unpaid hours.

At issue were hours that the employees were required to be available on duty in the house, but which they were not paid for. Under federal law, an employee in a residential facility who is not free to leave the premises is considered to be working.

Stonington required that employees remain available to patients and on the premises, even during hours when they were “off.” According to sources at the U.S. Department of Labor, the company failed to record all the hours worked by the employees. Under the FLSA, companies have an obligation to keep accurate payroll records, to pay employees for all hours worked, and to pay when an employee works more than 40 hours per week.

“Among this department’s highest priorities is making sure that workers are paid all the wages they have earned,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. “In this case we have recovered more than $1 million in back wages for 143 employees.”

The defendants agreed to the consent judgment without admitting any wrongdoing, which resolves the matter. Under this judgment, the defendants, including Stonington Behavioral Health, Inc. agreed to pay a penalty of almost $50,000 plus $1,075,218 in back wages for the period covering July 1, 2004 to July 1, 2006.

The payments for wages and overtime totaling $1,075,218 average about $7,519 per employee.  They must be paid no later than September 5, 2007. In addition, the companies have already paid $49,156 in civil penalties.

The judgment was filed in March by the Regional Solicitor’s Office in Boston, in a U.S. District Court for Connecticut. It was signed by Judge Janet Bond Arterton. As part of the judgment, the defendants are prohibited from violating the federal wage, overtime and record-keeping laws in the future.

This announcement comes in the wake of a number of successful suits by the U.S. Department of Labor for overtime and violations. In one recent example, nearly 2,600 workers who cleaned up and renovated two naval facilities in the wake of Hurricane Katrina were awarded $1.5 million in back wages. The affected workers were hired by federal contractors and subcontractors to complete work on military facilities in Gulfport, Mississippi and Belle Chasse, Louisiana.  

In that case, the employees worked for one of 107 sub-contractors hired by KBR, Inc. of Virginia. The companies involved failed to pay wages and benefits required under federal contracts. In most cases, federal contractors and their sub-contractors must pay the “prevailing wage” in an area. This means they are required to pay a rate that is often significantly higher than the minimum wage. In some cases, the companies involved also failed to pay overtime wages. The U.S. Department of Labor is still searching for some of those workers, to make sure that they receive the money they are owed.

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