Any company going through a wage and hour lawsuit will tell you how costly it is. Hiring a New York lawyer to help you with a legal battle is essential in most situations, but it will be expensive. As an employer, you can take a few simple steps to ensure you maintain compliance with the provisions in the Fair Labor Standards Act. Spending the extra time and effort to do so could avoid a costly legal battle, which in turn could hurt the long-term success of the company tremendously.
Don’t Allow Working Off The Clock
One of the first things an employer should do when they hire a new employee is be very clear about the stance on working off the clock. Working off the clock should have serious consequences, including termination, for any employee. In order to prevent this from happening, law firms in NYC suggest not allowing any hourly employees to access work from technology like smart phones and tablets. Even checking their work-related emails when they aren’t on the clock is a potential violation of the laws.
Review and Update Job Descriptions
The duties of each employee should paint a clear picture of how to classify them in terms of the wages they earn. A certain job title alone doesn’t necessarily mean they meet all of the qualifications to have the exempt status. In your review of job descriptions, you may find an employee has been misclassified. If this happens, you should immediately re-classify them and apply any necessary back wages in order to prevent any legal issues requiring employment lawyers in NYC. Reviewing and updating job descriptions should be a regular process completed frequently.
Hold Frequent Wage and Hour Law Training Sessions
Any higher-ranking member of an organization should be required to have training sessions in wage and hour law. The rules and regulations of the FLSA are complex and require an expert in the field to explain. Some employment lawyers in NYC will come to your facility to provide training to managers, supervisors and human resources employees. Otherwise, attending regular seminars in wage and hour law will help employers understand possible violations and can adjust their policies and practices accordingly.
Gordon & Gordon is here to help employers understand wage and hour law in order to prevent costly legal battles. But if you find yourself in a situation where you need a New York lawyer to help you out, just know we are always here and available. Be sure to contact us to explain your situation so you can determine whether our services will benefit you.