While much litigation has concerned the applicability of the administrative exemption to loan officers, culminating in the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit’s invalidation of the Department of Labor’s interpretation that they do not qualify for that exemption, loan officers with appropriate job duties and responsibilities may also qualify for the outside sales
exemption
Appellate Court Rejects Argument That Payment of Supplemental Compensation Defeats Salary Basis
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
Exempt status under the FLSA often requires payment of a fixed salary on the salary basis discussed in the DOL regulations. 29 C.F.R. § 541.602. An employee classified as exempt sometimes asserts that receipt of supplemental compensation beyond the fixed salary renders him a non-exempt employee. Courts, however, have rejected this argument, requiring only payment of the fixed…
Mississippi Court Finds Question of Fact as to “Vehicle” Status of Mobile Homes
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
One of the industry-specific overtime exemptions contained in 29 U.S.C. § 213(b) is the exemption from overtime applicable to sales employees engaged in selling “trailers, boats, or aircraft, if he is employed by a nonmanufacturing establishment primarily engaged in the business of selling trailers, boats, or aircraft to ultimate purchasers.” Judge Carlton W. Reeves of…
Southern District Judge McMahon: Junior Accountants Are Exempt “Professionals”
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
FLSA litigation generally moves from industry-to-industry, and, in the most recent wave of litigation, one of the hardest hit industries has been the accounting profession, particularly the “big four” accounting firms, which have been subjected to large-scale challenges of their classification of junior accountants as exempt. Typically, these individuals hold accounting degrees and…
Tenth Circuit Upholds Salary Basis (and Thus Exempt Status) Despite Deductions From PTO Bank
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
The more straightforward requirement in classifying an employee as exempt from overtime under the FLSA’s white collar exemptions is payment – on a “salary basis” – of a salary no less than $455/week (some states require a higher salary basis). Employers must ensure this amount is paid to the employee for each and every workweek…
Florida District Court Rejects “Willful” Allegation, Dismisses Misclassification Claim
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Damages
In Florida, where state law only obligates employers to pay minimum wage (but not overtime) and FLSA litigation remains rampant, the FLSA limitations period is of particular importance in overtime disputes, particularly in regard to whether the limitations period is extended from two to three years based on a finding that the violation was…
Two Courts Analyze FLSA’s Establishment Test To Determine If Plaintiffs Are Entitled To Overtime Pay
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
General practitioners and non-attorneys may or may not be aware that the applicability of the FLSA’s overtime provision to various aspects of a business is not always uniform across the “establishment.” This is because the FLSA’s implementing regulations contemplate multiple distinct “establishments” even within the same physical premises. 29 C.F.R. § 779.305.Two new District Court decisions highlight…
Ohio Federal Court: USDOL’s “New” Interpretation of Loan Officer Status Was Proper
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
Much attention has been paid to the Department of Labor’s March 2010 Administrative Interpretation, which reversed prior DOL opinions and stated that mortgage loan officers do not qualify for the administrative exemption under the FLSA. The Mortgage Bankers Association has filed a lawsuit seeking to invalidate the interpretation as a violation of the Administrative Procedures…
Sixth Circuit Clarifies: Salary Must Be Paid to Satisfy Salary Basis Test
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
While it may seem straightforward and not subject to dispute that an exempt employee paid the required “salary basis” must actually receive his or her salary to preserve exempt status, the law, as always, is not so clear cut. In fact, an employer had prevailed in arguing that the actual payment of the salary is…
After Bench Trial, District Judge Finds Toxicology Supervisor To Be Exempt Learned Professional
By Noel P. Tripp on
Posted in Exemptions
In recent weeks, we have discussed challenges to FLSA exempt status brought by employees many might assume to be properly exempt, such as a Director for the Red Cross. In another recent rejection of a claim of this type brought by the the aggressive plaintiffs’ bar, a federal court in Pennsylvania has ruled, following…