Virtually every business with employees is concerned about running afoul of wage and hour laws as the federal government steps up investigations and enforcement resources. The cost of non-compliance can hit your bottom line and image, but there also are costs for being too conservative and unnecessarily inflating your compensation expenses.
Counseling & Compliance
Human resources departments and front line managers need proactive guidance to align pay practices with federal and state law—with special attention if you have employees or contractors in California. Moreover, many municipalities have started creating their own set of wage and hour regulations. The landmines are improper interpretation of exempt classification rules, and application of minimum wage, prevailing wage, overtime pay and breaks and accuracy in calculating and tracking pay for time worked. Your policies, pay practices, job descriptions, records and decisions are subject to investigation and should be audited and reviewed before regulators knock on the door.
We get in front of these concerns, ensuring your compensation and management practices meet the standards of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), similar state and local laws, and Davis Bacon, Walsh-Healey, McNamara-O’Hara and other wage and hour laws and regulations. We’ve helped businesses with small numbers of employees or workforces thousands strong located in multiple states. We have deep experience counseling employers in California and are current on the special nature of employment law there.
Our Services
- Exempt/non-exempt classification decisions
- Classification of independent contractors
- Pay practices regarding meals, rest breaks, off-the-clock time
- Minimum wage payment requirements
- Proper calculation of pay rates
- Overtime wages and exemptions
- Salesforce wage requirements
- Prevailing wage and other public contracting requirements
- Pay practices for employees who receive tips
- Multistate employer counsel
Defense Against Individual or Class Action Claims
As enforcement of wage and hour law intensifies, individual and group claims against employers are becoming more prevalent. Our litigators will aggressively assert your position in a wage and hour suit and bring to bear abundant experience representing clients with workers who are local, national or global, as well as unionized, working remotely or traveling constantly. You’ll be in constant communication with our team as, together, we set the strategy, establish the team and launch a defense aligned with your objectives. At the same time, we’ll help you ensure that any issues that led to the dispute are examined so lessons learned can be applied to practice and policy improvements.
California Wage & Hour Law
California sets its own standards for many pay issues, including minimum wage, exempt classification, independent contractor practices, travel time and pay practices for breaks. As a firm with offices in California, we routinely advise employers with operations there on California employment regulations. We keep abreast of the economic, social and political environment so we can advise and prepare you ahead of changing laws.