As an employer, you know the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires you to track how long your hourly employees work and what they earn. How you do it, though, is up to you.

Each method has its share of pitfalls:

• Hand-written timesheets - One of the oldest methods, completed by either the employee or the employer. Of course, it’s not too hard to alter a document like this, or to question legibility of the numbers.
• Punch clocks – Harder to alter by hand, but in many cases there’s little to keep a co-worker from punching in or out for someone else, commonly called “buddy punching.”
• Computerized and biometric timekeeping – These simplify tracking and reporting data, and it’s pretty hard to fake out a fingerprint scanner. But, they can’t prevent employees from clocking in on time and making personal phone calls or surfing the web instead of starting work. And it may still be possible to enter unauthorized overtime.

In 2016, New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman petitioned the state’s Supreme Court, alleging that Domino’s Pizza was a joint employer and therefore liable for “systematic underpayment” of employees at three franchises. Schneiderman says Domino’s violated New York’s Franchise Sales Act by requiring franchisees to use software known to under-calculate  wages. The franchisees settled in 2017, but Domino’s Corporate remains the sole defendant. Schneiderman claims “Domino's was heavily involved in the employment practices of the three franchisees and, as a result, is a joint employer of the workers at the franchisees' stores and is responsible for underpaid wages to these workers,” reports Long Island.com.

We've blogged on phishing before, but it's time for a refresh. In 2017 the IRS received approximately 900 complaints about phishing and suspected scams. That’s up from about 100 in 2016, and the number is expected to grow again in 2018. According to the IRS, in 2017 “more than 200 employers were victimized, which translated into hundreds of thousands of employees who had their identities compromised.” Don’t let your company be the next victim.

Like many U.S. employers, you may be looking to fill or create new jobs.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there are 5.9 million U.S. job openings as of November 2017. But with millions seeking employment, how can you reach qualified candidates?

It used to be that once an employee left a job, they were cutting ties with the organization forever. However, it’s becoming more common for employers to rehire former employees, anyone from seasonal workers to full-time professionals. A 2015 national survey of more than 1,800 human resources professionals, managers and employees found that ”nearly half of HR professionals claim their organization previously had a policy against rehiring former employees – even if the employee left in good standing – but 76 percent say they are more accepting of hiring boomerang employees today than in the past.”  So - how do you do it right?

Employees facing exit interviews need only look to Google for article after article offering guidance on what to say and what not to say. Leaving a job can be an emotional roller coaster, so employees are often advised to be constructive and diplomatic, honest but guarded and most of all, to avoid burning bridges. There’s an art to giving constructive criticism without breaking confidence with coworkers or making one’s manager look bad. Not everyone can pull it off and some don’t even want to try. The result for employers? Vague answers to exit interview questions and a lack of actionable insights. But, there’s plenty you can do to help departing employees give useful feedback while still taking the high road.

In October 2015, 23.7% of US high school students age 16-19 had jobs. Where are these young people working? According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, industries in accommodation and food services (e.g. restaurants, hotels), retail (including grocery and food stores) and arts, entertainment and recreation (including amusement parks) see the highest numbers of youth workers. These tend to be companies looking for entry-level, minimum wage and temporary workers, maybe even yours. 

In our blog last week, we explored the general problem of employee misclassification.  This week we're taking a closer look at independent contractor versus employee status.

It’s Monday morning: Employees make their way to their workstations, the Keurig whirrs in the break room and the office starts to hum along as usual. Then, an employee approaches you and says that he’s done some research and discovered that his exempt job has been misclassified, and he’s actually nonexempt. What? No one has ever questioned their job status before, and your company’s job titles and descriptions are all in order. Is this employee correct? Are there others?  How is a misclassification fixed? Or do you need to do anything about it? If he’s right, does the company owe him money? Are there tax penalties?

It’s going to be a long week.

Think you don't need automated timekeeping? Think again. But what exactly is it and how can it help your business?