Three common FLSA misconceptions to avoid
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets forth basic provisions to ensure employees are properly compensated for their time and attendance. However, those rules are coupled with numerous specific provisions that can make it difficult to apply across industries. Confusion about how labor rights affect employees at different businesses can lead employers to fall out of compliance with the FLSA, and therefore be forced to pay back wages and/or penalties.
The following are common misconceptions that can put companies in jeopardy of a labor rights violation:
1. Failing to pay for overtime employee attendance
Some employers pay their employees correct wages for their regular hours worked but fail to pay them for work that goes beyond 40 hours a week. To stay in compliance with the FLSA, employers must pay their workers one-and-a-half-times their standard hourly pay for those supplementary minutes or hours.
2. Keeping inaccurate records
Simply paying employees the correct wages is not enough to prevent violations of basic labor rights. Employers are obligated to keep complete records of their covered workers as well. If they do not, employers may not be able to furnish documents to demonstrate their adherence to the FLSA.
3. Paying a salary makes individuals exempt from overtime
The Department of Labor has recently seen a slew of cases in which employers assumed they were exempt from overtime requirements because they paid their employees a salary. Giving workers a set weekly wage that exceeds federal minimum rates is not always enough to guarantee they aren't owed overtime.
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