Wage & Hour Counsel : Wage & Hour Lawyer & Attorney : Littler Mendelson Law Firm : Employment Law, Labor Relations

The following changes were made to the regulations:

• WAC 296-126-001 was updated to clarify language, delete the reference to the Industrial Welfare Committee, and add notes referring public employers to RCW 49.12.005(3) and employers to the variance rule in WAC 296-126-130.

• WAC 296-126-002 definitions were revised as follows:
  • “Employer” was updated to reflect the amended definition in chapter 49.12 RCW;
  • “Employee” was clarified by restating the exemptions from the definition;
  • “Adult” was updated by deleting “of either sex”;
  • “Minor” was updated by deleting “of either sex”;
  • “Committee” was deleted since the Industrial Welfare Committee no longer exists; and
  • “Department” and “Director” were added to be consistent with chapter 49.12 RCW.

• WAC 296-126-010 was updated by deleting outdated language that refers to the adult minimum wage as $1.80 an hour. In addition, language was added to address the payment of sub-minimum wage rates under special certificates issued by L&I.

• WAC 296-126-015 was revised to add a new section that explains how to calculate wage rates under special certificates.

• WAC 296-126-030(8) was modified by replacing the term “deductions” with “adjustments” in order to be consistent with other rules.

• WAC 296-126-040 was updated to clarify the requirements for employee pay stubs. The revised regulation requires that employee pay stubs be provided in “a separate written statement from the paycheck.” In addition, the revised regulation clarifies that pay stubs “may be furnished or made available electronically provided each employee has access to receive and copy it on the payday.”

• WAC 296-126-050 was updated to clarify the requirement that, upon receiving a written request from a former employee, an employer must furnish a signed written statement stating the reasons for and effective date of the employee’s discharge within 10 days of the former employee’s request. A note was also added to the regulation explaining that additional recordkeeping requirements are stated in WAC 296-128-010 through 296-128-030.

• WAC 296-126-060 was repealed to eliminate duplicative language requiring an employer of minors to obtain a work permit (the requirement is already provided in chapter 296-125 WAC).

• WAC 296-126-080 was revised to add the specific title of the poster employers are required to keep.

• WAC 296-126-090 was revised to replace the term “industrial welfare committee” with “department” in order to be consistent with RCW 43.22.280 and .282 and RCW 49.12.

• WAC 296-126-096 was repealed because it addressed non-wage and hour issues (manual lifting) that are already covered by the L&I Division of Safety and Health.

• WAC 296-126-130 was updated to clarify the process for employers to obtain wage and hour variances from L&I.

This entry was written by Douglas E. Smith.

Image credit: Dbenbenn.

California

A November 3, 2009 California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) memo indicated that the overtime exemption rates for licensed physicians and surgeons, and computer software employees in California will remain unchanged for the period beginning January 1, 2010.

Also, an August 19, 2009 DLSE opinion letter withdrew a 2002 opinion letter that precluded partial week furloughs of exempt employees, and in the process conformed California law on furloughing exempt employees to federal law. For more information, please see our previous entry and ASAP.

Illinois

HB 3634, effective August 14, 2009, amended Illinois’ Equal Pay Act and now requires that an employer preserve personnel records for a specified period of time. Additionally, an action to collect a wage claim must be brought within one year from the date of underpayment.

New York

SB 3357, effective October 26, 2009, requires that employers provide employees with written notice at the time of hire of their regular and overtime hourly wage rates, and to obtain a written acknowledgement of receipt of this notice. Although no particular form is required, the New York Department of Labor has created a form that employers can use to ensure compliance.

New Jersey

New Jersey Administrative Code § 12:55-2.1 was amended, effective September 21, 2009, to permit employers to withhold or divert a portion of an employee's wages for health club membership fees or for child care service. The deduction must be authorized either in writing by the employee, or under a collective bargaining agreement. For more information, please see our previous entry.

New Jersey also permits employers to make payroll deductions that are:

• authorized by state or federal law;
• authorized in writing by the employee or pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement as contributions to welfare, insurance, hospitalization, medical, pension, retirement, and profit-sharing plans, etc., on behalf of the employee, his or her spouse, or both;
• authorized as contributions either in writing by the employee or under collective bargaining agreement for payment into company-operated thrift plans, or security options, or security purchase plans to buy securities of the employing corporation or other corporations, provided the securities are listed on the stock exchange or are marketable over the counter;
• approved by the employee as payment into the employee’s personal savings account, credit union, saving fund society, savings and loan or building and loan association, and payments to banks for Christmas, vacation, or other savings funds, provided all deductions are approved by the employer;
• owed as payments for company products or loans, payments for safety equipment, purchase of U.S. government bonds, and/or payments to correct payroll errors, provided all deductions are approved by the employer;
• authorized as contributions to recognized charities, provided deductions are approved by the employer;
• authorized by the employee or collective bargaining agent as payments for rental, laundering, or dry cleaning of work clothing or uniforms, provided all deductions are approved by the employer;
• permitted as union dues, initiation fees, or other charges;
• authorized in writing by the employee, pursuant to collective bargaining agreement to a political committee, continuing political committee, or both, established by the employee’s labor union for the purpose of making contributions to aid or promote nomination, election, or defeat of any candidate for public office of a state or of a county, municipality, or school district, or passage or defeat of any public question;
• authorized in writing by the employee to any political committee or continuing political committee, for purposes of making contributions to aid or promote the nomination, election, or defeat of any candidate for public office of a state or of a county, municipality, or school district, or passage or defeat of any public question (administrative expenses in making a payroll deduction shall be borne by the committee, at the option of the employer);
• authorized by the employee for employer-sponsored programs for purchase of insurance or annuities on a group or individual basis, if otherwise permitted by law; or
• authorized as a deduction by Commissioner of Labor, by regulation, if approved by the employer.

This entry was written by Michael Grosso.