In 2018, the Michigan legislature adopted, and then within the same legislative session amended, two voter-approved ballot initiatives, one to significantly raised Michigan’s minimum wage and the other to expand employer obligations to provide paid sick leave. In 2022, the Michigan Court of Claims held that the legislature’s actions violated the Michigan Constitution and ordered
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DOL Issues Internal Guidance on Telework Under the FLSA & FMLA
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued guidance on the application of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to employees who telework from home or from another location away from the employer’s facility. Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2023-1, released on February 9, 2023, is directed to agency…
Arizona’s Voter-Approved Minimum Wage, Paid Sick Leave Law Constitutional, State High Court Affirms
New York City Enacts Municipal Office of Labor Standards; Office’s Initial Mandate Is To Enforce NYC Earned Sick Time Act
On November 30, 2015, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio signed a bill establishing an “Office of Labor Standards,” to be headed by a Director appointed by the Mayor. The Office, once established, is tasked with “study[ing] and mak[ing] recommendations for worker education, safety and protection, educat[ing] employers on labor laws, creat[ing] public education…
Indiana Appeals Court Declines to Adjudicate Pastor’s Claim For Unpaid Vacation, Citing Ministerial Exception
Courts adjudicating employment disputes under employment statutes will decline to do so where inquiry into the employment relationship will interfere with First Amendment religious protections. Often, this concerns a claim challenging the legality of termination of a member of the clergy, but the concept can also extend to such employees’ claims under wage-and-hour laws, as…
Trenton Sick Leave Law Withstands Judicial Challenge; Philadelphia Sick Leave Law May Become Preempted
Trenton, New Jersey, like numerous other municipalities (especially in New Jersey), recently enacted its own paid sick leave law. As with Seattle’s recent minimum wage rulemaking, a coalition of New Jersey business groups challenged the city’s authority to do so, urging that the ordinance exceeded the city’s police powers and offended constitutional protections. New…
Illinois Federal Judge: Employer Free to Modify Terms of Vacation Policy Under Illinois Wage Law
In most states, private non-unionized employers are free to provide vacation and other benefits as they see fit (subject to evolving state and municipal requirements such as New York City’s Earned Sick Time Act), but must ensure any policy language complies with applicable state law and that any policy changes due not result in…
Philadelphia Joins New York City, Newark and Many Other Jurisdictions In Requiring Paid Sick Leave
On February 12, Mayor Michael Nutter signed a bill requiring Philadelphia employers with 10 or more employees to offer paid sick leave, joining neighbors New York City and Newark, New Jersey, as well as other states and localities, in enacting such a requirement. The Philadelphia bill takes effect in mid-May, and requires that eligible…
Louisiana Court Holds That PTO Days Are Considered Wages Under State Law
Last month, an intermediate appeals court in Louisiana held that accrued and unused paid days off constituted earned wages for which compensation was due to a former employee upon separation under the Louisiana Wage Payment Act (“LWPA”). Davis v. St. Francisville Country Manor, L.L.C., 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2241, 1-2 (La.App. 1 Cir. Nov.…
Second Circuit Grants WARN Plaintiffs New Life On “Single Employer” Theory
Potential wage liability attaches not only to hours already worked (under the FLSA), but also to violations of the Worker Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act (WARN) which requires 60 days’ notice or pay in lieu of notice for covered plant closings or mass layoffs. One issue that can arise under the WARN act, as it…