Tag: DOL

US Labor Department, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment sign agreement to reduce misclassification of employees as independent contractors

By Rita Zeidner Dec 6, 2011 HR Management & Compliance

Updated: Dec 6, 2011

Nancy J. Leppink, deputy administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, and Ellen Golombek, executive director of the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, signed a memorandum of understanding Dec. 5 regarding the improper classification of employees as independent contractors. “This memorandum of understanding helps us send a message: We’re standing […]

$1 M in back wages recovered for NJ gas station workers

By Chad Hudnall Dec 2, 2011 HR Management & Compliance

Updated: Dec 2, 2011

A multi-year investigation by the United States Department of Labor into violations of wage and hour laws by New Jersey gas stations has found “consistent and widespread noncompliance,” according to agency officials. The investment action recovered more than $1 million in back wages for 295 workers. In an agency statement, DOL Secretary Hilda L. Solis […]

Supreme Court to Hear Arguments on Outside Sales Exemption

By Chad Hudnall Nov 28, 2011 HR Management & Compliance

Updated: Nov 28, 2011

The Supreme Court today agreed to hear a Fair Labor Standards Act case to decide if drug company reps should qualify for the outside sales exemption. Specifically, Christopher v. SmithKline Beecham Corp. is about whether pharmaceutical sales reps working more than 40 hours in a week are eligible for overtime under the FLSA. A key question […]

DOL Clarifies Mental Health Parity’s Effect on Pre-Authorization

By David Slaughter, JD, Senior Content Specialist, Legal Nov 22, 2011 Benefits and Compensation

Updated: Nov 22, 2011

The effect of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) on prior authorization practices and other “nonquantitative treatment limitations” was clarified Nov. 17 in guidance from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The MHPAEA interim final rules issued in February 2010 imposed a detailed numerical formula for determining whether quantitative limits such as copayments […]

7 Must Read Comp Articles

By HR Daily Advisor Staff Nov 18, 2011 Benefits and Compensation

Updated: Nov 18, 2011

The Top 5 Compensation Habits to Kick Most comp managers have a few bad habits, but they’re hard to break, say experts Stacey Lunches and Breaks—’Little’ Violations, But Fines Add Up Quickly In yesterday’s Advisor, we covered two of the most common wage/hour violations; today, more violations. Pay Never Goes Down? Another Bad Habit In […]

Supreme Court to Rule on Whether Health Reform Stands or Falls

By Todd Leeuwenburgh Nov 14, 2011 Benefits and Compensation

Updated: Nov 14, 2011

Fast on the heels of the latest pertinent appeals court ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court definitively announced on Nov. 14 it will decide the question of whether Congress exceeded its powers to regulate commerce when it required people to buy health insurance as part of health reform (or in the converse, whether the individual mandate is allowed […]

Could IRS Dialogue With Governmental Plans Lead to More Draconian Retirement Plan Guidance?

By Gwen Cofield, Contributing Editor Nov 9, 2011 Benefits and Compensation

Updated: Nov 9, 2011

The IRS and Treasury Department want to “initiate a dialogue” with the governmental plan community about how to better define when a retirement plan becomes a government plan, but while dialogue is good, will it result in burdensome regulatory requirements? On Nov. 8, the IRS and Treasury Department issued proposed rules on determining governmental plan […]

Attorney Blasts DOL’s ‘Gotcha Approach’ to Workplace Enforcement

By HR Hero Line Nov 4, 2011 HR Hero Line

Updated: Nov 4, 2011

The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division’s (WHD) recent enforcement efforts represent a flawed approach that assumes incorrectly that employers are deliberately violating the law, according to David Fortney, cofounder of Fortney & Scott, LLC, in Washington, D.C., who testified before a U. S. House of Representatives subcommittee November 3. Fortney, editor […]