If your employer requires you to be on call for work, you must be paid, even if you don’t end up actually working, according to a California appellate court. This can be a confusing gray area for employees, but the court made it crystal clear: Requiring employees to be on call but not paying them anything if they don’t work is “abuse,” according to a 2019 ruling. These flexible scheduling practices could apply to many industries — particularly consumer-facing roles such as sales staff, retail … [Read more...]
Overtime Still Applies to Highly Compensated Sales Staff
It doesn’t matter how much money you take home in commissions – you can still be entitled to overtime pay, according to a recent decision in federal court. Background Wyndham Vacation Ownership operates resorts and time-share units across the Caribbean and North America. Sales representatives at Wyndham’s four Tennessee properties filed a lawsuit, Pierce v. Wyndham Vacation Resorts, Inc., in which they claimed the company violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). They said the company … [Read more...]
Ninth Circuit upholds gender pay gaps based on prior salary. Here’s why they got it wrong.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dealt a setback to gender pay equity with its recent decision in Rizo v. Yovino, No. 16-15372 (9th Cir. April 27, 2017). In Rizo, the court held that previous salary alone can be “a factor other than sex” for purposes of the Equal Pay Act. As a result, workplace gender gaps are permissible even if the gap is solely caused by employees’ pay at previous jobs. Under the Equal Pay Act, 29 U.S.C. § 206(d), employers must pay men and women the same … [Read more...]
California court affirms commissioned employees’ right to paid rest breaks
A recent California labor law decision confirms that even commissioned employees must be paid specifically for rest breaks. In Vaquero v. Stoneledge Furniture, the California Court of Appeal held that employers must separately compensate commissioned employees for paid rest breaks required by state laws and regulations. Compensation schemes that fail to do so violate California law and can leave employers exposed to class-action lawsuits from employees. In Vaquero, commissioned former … [Read more...]
Working for Free: Tide Slowly Turning for Long-Exploited Interns and Trainees
Getting a foothold in a new career takes dedication and sacrifice. In many fields it’s expected that new entrants will pay their dues—often, ironically enough, by working for free. While unpaid interns and trainees often do get valuable experience and may even advance their careers, the real winners in these arrangements have always been employers. For decades, entire industries have built their economics on the backs of newcomers who have no choice but to work for free in exchange for necessary … [Read more...]