Massachusetts Limits Payroll Deductions

March 11th, 2011 Posted by Madison

A recent case in Supreme Court severely limits the that an employer may make under the Payment of Wages Law, even with the employee’s permission.

 

In Camara v. Attorney General, the state’s highest court determined that an employer could not make wage deductions when the employer had unilateral power to determine the employee’s negligence and the amount of the damages. Michael Camara is Vice President of ABC Disposal, a garbage company based in Bedford, and the employer in question.

 

In this case, truck drivers for ABC Disposal Service were given a choice after an accident. They could accept disciplinary action for causing the accident, or they could the company for the damages incurred. Payment was made through weekly with the employee’s written consent. The deductions were small enough so the employee still earned at least the each week.

 

The Massachusetts Supreme Court determined that these deductions were not allowed because the company determined who was at fault for the accident and set a dollar amount on the damages. A company safety office would investigate the accident and report his findings. The supervisory safety manager would then (more…)

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New York Revamps New Hire Regulations

January 13th, 2010 Posted by Cara

The New York State Labor Department has reversed a policy implemented in late 2009, which would have required every employer to use the same form for employees.

 

New York employers are still required to notify every new in writing of the ’s:

  • Hourly
  • Overtime rate if applicable
  • Payday

However, employers can use any form they already have in place, or create a new one, to provide such notification.

 

New York employers must receive written acknowledgment of this wage notification from employees. The most common way to do this is for the employee to sign a copy of the notification and return it, while keeping one copy for the employee’s records.

 

In late October 2009, the New York Department of Labor issued a mandatory form to be used by all temporary agencies. Shortly thereafter, the department posted an online notice with a mandatory form to be used by all New York employers (other than temp agencies) to comply (more…)

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2009 Ohio Minimum Wage is $7.30

January 28th, 2009 Posted by Madison

 According to the Ohio Department of Commerce, the of increased its as of January 1, 2009.

 

The Ohio minimum wage, which tracks the cost of living, went up by 30 cents an hour. The old rate was $7.00 per hour and the rate is $7.30.

 

The increase in Ohio is not the largest increase in the minimum wage nationwide. In Washington, the increase was 48 cents an hour – to $8.55 hourly from $8.07. Oregon experienced a 45-cent hike, bringing its rate to $8.40 hourly. Connecticut’s rate also went up by 45 cents an hour. The new Connecticut minimum is now $8.00 an hour.

 

Altogether, 11 states increased their minimum wage rates as of January 1, 2009.

 

The largest actual minimum wage increase was in New . Under a new passed by voters in 2006, the rate went up $1.00 an hour, from $6.50 to $7.50. New ’s increase was not based on the cost of living, however.

 

In November of 2006, voters in Ohio approved a constitutional amendment mandating that the minimum wage track the inflation rate annual. The state uses the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for urban wage earners and clerical workers for a 12-month period that ends each August.

 

Because the CPI climbed 4.6% between September 1, 2007 and August 21, 2008, Ohio’s minimum wage also showed an atypically large jump, as did the wage rates in several other states as well.

 

This January 1 the minimum wage for Ohio workers receiving tips also went up. The new rate is $3.65 hourly, an increase of 15 cents. If a tipped in Ohio does not earn an average of $3.65 an hour in tips, then the management is required to make up the difference.

 

Ohio law has an exception whereby smaller companies may their workers less than larger companies do. If revenue is below $267,000 in 2009, the company is allowed to $6.55 an hour. However, that will only be the case until July 24, 2009, when the new minimum wage of $7.25 an hour overrides lower rates.

 

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2009 New Mexico Minimum Wage is $7.50

January 26th, 2009 Posted by Derrick

New Mexico’s hike for 2009 was the largest single in any for January, 2009.

 

According to the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, the increased  $1.00 an hour on January 1, 2009, from $6.50 an hour to $7.50 an hour. Minimum wage for overtime for most employees will be $11.25 an hour.

 

The New Mexico has its share of exceptions. For example, seasonal employees in some counties are not under the protection of the minimum wage laws, nor are employees of cotton gins. Typically, both the overtime and the minimum wage laws are not applicable to genuine executives, administrators, professionals, supervisors, and superintendents.

 

Any employer who has not updated his or her New Mexico minimum wage poster should do so now.

 

Certain workers who are hired to perform investigative work for the federal government are covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, otherwise known as the FLSA. State law exempts them from the overtime law, which requires that employees working more than 40 hours a week must be paid 1.5 times their regular for their overtime. Nevertheless, they are still entitled to the federal minimum wage, at the least.

 

The minimum wage in New Mexico, incidentally, does not cover those workers under 18 who have not graduated from high school. It is a seldom-utilized and little-known aspect of New Mexico labor law.

  (more…)

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House Passes Paycheck Fairness Act

January 23rd, 2009 Posted by Amelia

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed the , an amendment to the or federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

 

The , also known as HB 12, would amend provisions of the FLSA to revise remedies and improve enforcement efforts for preventing discrimination based on an ’s .

 

This act is likely to pass the Senate and be signed into by President Barack Obama. If it does, employers may face many more lawsuits for discrimination based on gender.

 

Every employer should have a clear written policy prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, including gender discrimination and wage discrimination.

 

The Paycheck Fairness Act was passed to provide regulator support for the Ledbetter Fair Act.

 

The voting was largely along party lines, with many (more…)

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