Fair Labor Standards

Our attorneys have assisted many municipalities, even those who are not our regular clients, with complex litigation and threats of litigation centering upon the partial public safety exemptions to the Fair Labor Standards Act. Overtime compensation can be a complex and hotly debated issue at the bargaining table. It is made more complex by the interplay of state and federal wage and hour law with contractual overtime benefits and past practice.

Through our efforts many employers, especially police and fire departments, have been able to reduce or eliminate potential liability, and bring their pay practices into compliance with the FLSA.

We can assess your potential liability for unpaid overtime and help you map a path to limit or eliminate any potential liability. Our experience and extensive work in this area have given us insight into legitimate strategies for accounting for hours worked and overtime premium pay that obtain the most favorable results for the employer.

Articles

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has been around since the 1930's, yet it remains a relatively complicated and misunderstood area of the law. The FLSA governs minimum wage and overtime pay. In the public sector, the FLSA has been enforced only since 1986, and the unusual schedules worked by public safety employees create an additional level of complexity for employers.

The article "Employees and Unions Looking for FLSA Payday" describes a few of the more common scenarios faced by public employers trying to comply with the FLSA.

The article "Gap Time Explained" is a brief explanation of one of the more technical aspects of FLSA compliance in the public safety arena.