In this course we discuss the wage and hour laws that apply to paying employees on the federal and state level. We start with defining the crucial elements of wage and hour law including what is a work week, a work day and hours worked and how the hours must be tracked or accounted for. From this basis we discuss the rules for calculating overtime and the effects that other payments have on overtime including discretionary and nondiscretionary bonuses and commissions.
We then work through examples of calculating overtime correctly using both the FLSA method and the alternate (or commonly understood) method as well as what to do if the employee is working at two or more rates. We discuss the minimum wage and how it can be different on the state or the federal level and what can be used as credit against it by the employer.
Since federal law does not cover all aspects of paying employees, we need to concentrate on state laws in the areas of paid family leave, mandatory sick leave, meal and rest periods, paystubs and notices, how often employees must be paid, acceptable methods that may be used to pay employees, and handling terminating employees including vacation payouts. We conclude with our section on what can be legally deducted from an employee’s wages.
Learning Objectives
- Define the wage and hour terms work week, work day, hours worked, overtime and minimum wage
- Recognize the differences between federal and state laws and when which laws would take priority
- Discover how to compute overtime correctly under the FLSA
- Recognize how to track hours worked to pay the employee correctly
- Identify the requirements for how often to pay employees and by what method under state laws
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Prerequisites
Prerequisite: Experience with labor management and familiarity with basic wage and hour laws and FLSA are expected in this course, be it through your job experience or through former organized study.
Advanced Preparation: None