The Employee v. Independent Contractor Issue, Part II
The most important factor under DOL rules (which state courts follow) is the extent to which the individual worker is economically dependent on the source of payment. Importantly, the rule does not specify how long the economic dependency must last. If the worker was economically dependent on the defendant when the dispute arose, that is typically sufficient to suggest an employer-employee relationship.
The Employee v. Independent Contractor Issue, Part I
This issue is treated as an affirmative defense, meaning that it is usually a jury issue in which each side must prove its point. This adds a lot of expense and risk to cases, beginning at the summary judgment stage and especially if the issue goes to trial.
Claimants, Defendants Have Good Reasons to Resolve FLSA Overtime Claims Early
FLSA claims for overtime compensation, whether based on a demand letter or a complaint, are easy cases to evaluate from their inception. The FLSA overtime provisions require employers to pay nonexempt employees one and one-half times their regular hourly rate of pay for all hours worked over forty in a seven-day workweek. Employers are required to maintain records of straight-time and overtime hours worked. When there are compliant records, whether someone has worked overtime within the relevant period (usually three years) cannot be legitimately disputed.
Potential Liability of Employers to Tipped Employees: A Key Area for Early Resolution
There are expensive traps associated with these opportunities to save. Employer liability per tipped employee arises if the common practice of tip pooling is abused. … Especially in these interesting times, many employers of tipped employees cannot resist saving payroll dollars by giving managers, cooks, and other non-tipped employees part of the tip pool aggregate, which, after all, is in many cases substantial.