What is a safe harbor policy for exempt employees?
The U.S. Department of Labor’s rules on the “white collar” exemptions from federal overtime and minimum wage requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act provide a “safe harbor” that may preserve an employee’s exempt status in the event impermissible deductions are made.
What is a safe harbor payroll deduction?
A payroll deduction policy only provides a safe harbor if the employer: (1) has a “clearly communicated” policy prohibiting improper deductions, including a complaint mechanism; (2) reimburses employees for any improper deductions; and (3) makes a good faith commitment to comply in the future.
Are there any laws that apply to exempt employees?
In fact, under the FLSA, exempt employees essentially enjoy no protections or rights. However, this does not mean that there aren’t any other federal and state laws to protect the rights and interests of exempt employees. For example, there are federal and minimum wage laws, which apply to exempt employees and not just non-exempt employees.
When can you legally dock an exempt employee’s pay?
Because exempt employees are paid for the job and not by the hour, if your employee is still working a full 40 hours and you’re deducting a half day’s pay each week when they go to their medical appointment, you are legally right, but morally and ethically wrong.
What kind of time off do exempt employees get?
Employers also offer exempt employees compensatory time off, often referred to as “comp time.” Instead of paying for time worked or travel time, the employee would receive time off as compensation. When people refer to “benefits” as part of a job position, comp time is included.
What happens when an employee loses their exempt status?
The result of “loss of exempt status” can be that all salaried employees are declared “non-exempt” and the employer is required to pay all of these workers retroactive overtime pay for the past two or more years. This can mean tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars in back pay damages for the average employer.
In fact, under the FLSA, exempt employees essentially enjoy no protections or rights. However, this does not mean that there aren’t any other federal and state laws to protect the rights and interests of exempt employees. For example, there are federal and minimum wage laws, which apply to exempt employees and not just non-exempt employees.
What makes an exempt employee exempt from overtime?
But, a proper job description isn’t the only thing that is required for an employee to be exempt from overtime payments: the employee must receive the same paycheck every pay period. This means that whether an employee works five hours or 55 hours in a week, the paycheck is the same.
Why are exempt employees more flexible than non exempt employees?
Exempt employees are expected, by most organizations, to work whatever hours are necessary to accomplish the goals and deliverables of their exempt position. Thus, exempt employees should have more flexibility in their schedules to come and go as necessary to accomplish work than non exempt or hourly employees.
What happens if exempt employee is working less than forty hours per week?
If an exempt employee is consistently working less than the usually expected forty hours per week, you can consider these actions. Managers can require strict schedules from exempt employees, but it’s generally better to allow exempt employees flexibility in completing their jobs.