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Volunteer Time

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Question:

Can my employee volunteer time to my non-profit organization or an event sponsored by the employer?

Answer:

For an exempt employee, ABSOLUTELY! There are no concerns regarding payment for an exempt employee under the FLSA, and they can actually be required to assist as part of their job, if it is part of their position.

For non-exempt employees….MAYBE. Under the FLSA, a non-exempt employee must generally (depending upon your State) be paid time and one half their regular hourly rate for hours worked in excess of forty in a workweek. The question becomes, does time spent by an employee volunteering their time to their organization (or event) count as hours worked?

In Opinion Letters issued by the Department of Labor some general guidelines were issued to eliminate the confusion of payment for “bona fide volunteer efforts for charitable purposes”. In general, volunteer status can be met when the following criteria is met:

  • Designation of “volunteer” status is not done unilaterally by the employer and it is truly a voluntary act with no coercion by the employer in an attempt to avoid minimum wage or overtime requirements;
  • The volunteer time must be for a civic, charitable, or humanitarian purpose without any promise, expectation or receipt of compensation by the employee (though a nominal fee may be provided);
  • The employee’s volunteer activities cannot not be similar to the job they perform as part of their regular employment; and
  • The volunteering must be performed outside the employee’s normal work hours.

IF a non-exempt employees meets this criteria and are willing to volunteer it may be best to have them sign a volunteer agreement – just so there are no concerns down the line.  Remember…that employee may be happy to do it now but when they get mad later, you could have quite a mess on your hands, even if it was determined to be voluntary.

** Be sure to wish Robin a Happy Anniversary – May starts our 20th year providing outsourced HR Solutions **

Strategic HR has the answers to all of your tough Benefits and Compensation related questions. Whether you need an audit of your exemption statuses, a job analysis of your positions or just need help defining your comp and benefit policies and procedures, Strategic HR can do the job. Please visit our Benefits & Compensation page for more information. 

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Co-op and Intern Exemption Status

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Question:

We would like to add a co-op student to our staff this year. Are Co-ops and Interns considered exempt or non-exempt? How do you determine this?

Answer:

According to the Department of Labor (DOL), it appears that interns who work in for-profit companies in the private sector are typically considered non-exempt: http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.htm.

However, whether or not student interns are covered under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) depends on the circumstances of the activities. If the work activity that the intern is to perform is an extension of the student’s academic programs, then the student might not be considered an employee.

To help determine if a student’s work is an extension of their academic program, these six criteria must be met:

1.     The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to that which would be given in a vocational school;

2.     The training is for the benefit of the trainee;

3.     The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under close observation;

4.     The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the trainees and on occasion the employer’s operations may actually be impeded;

5.     The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the completion of the training period; and

6.     The employer and the trainee understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.

If all six of these criteria are met, the intern may not be considered an employee to the employer requiring compliance with FLSA or even pay. For more details, visit http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs71.htm.

It’s tough having to navigate the ever-changing FLSA laws and other federally mandated rules and regulations. Strategic HR can help. Ask us for assistance with any of your benefits and compensation needs. Please visit our Benefits & Compensation page for more information on any of these services.

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Exemption Status of Inside Sales

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Question:

How do you handle the exemption status for Inside Sales employees?

Answer:

According to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Outside Sales employees are exempt while Inside Sales employees are non-exempt.  (http://www.flsa.com/coverage.html).

To help define inside versus outside sales roles, we researched the Department of Labor (DOL) website. The DOL defines outside sales employees as those that sell their employer’s products, services, or facilities to customers away from their employer’s place(s) of business, in general, either at the customer’s place of business or by selling door-to-door at the customer’s home. Sales made from the employer’s location (inside sales) do not qualify as outside sales. Similarly, work done by mail, telephone or the Internet do not qualify as outside sales unless such activities are in connection with sales made by personal contact. Some employees performing inside sales work in certain retail establishments may be exempt from the overtime pay protections under FLSA section 7(i) – http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/flsa/overtime/s1.htm.

Strategic HR has the answers to all of your tough Benefits and Compensation related questions. Whether you need an audit of your exemption statuses or a job analysis of your positions, Strategic HR can do the job. Please visit our Benefits & Compensation page for more information.

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Paying Employees for Work-Related Activities

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Question:

The other day I asked an employee to drop off some paperwork at a client’s on their way to lunch – it was on the way. When the employee turned in their time for the week they included that drive time to the client’s. Do I need to pay employees for their time when they are driving past the establishment anyway?

Answer:

Yes you do. Any time that the employee spends doing work-related activity should be counted as hours worked. According to the Department of Labor’s FLSA Hours Worked Advisor, hours worked includes all time from the work location to the place where the employee finishes their last work-related duty. That means you pay for the employee’s time from your office up to the drop off of the paperwork. The time spent going from the client’s location to lunch is not paid (just as you wouldn’t pay them to drive from work to lunch and back).

Are you hesitant when it comes to navigating FLSA and other federally mandated rules and regulations? Strategic HR understands your uncertainty. Ask us for assistance for any of your benefits and compensation needs. Please visit our Benefits & Compensation page for more information on any of these services.

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Requiring Employee Contact Information

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Question:

Can my company require our employees to provide their personal cell phone number and home email address?

Answer:

A  follow up question to you might be, why do you need them? If it is for emergency notifications, that is one thing, however if it is for working purposes, you would be better off providing them with a work email or cell phone. With email, it is best to make sure that any work related communications are managed in the secure environment of your company server. Also keep in mind that email or phone calls made outside of work hours to non-exempt employees count as “time worked”. Make sure you are tracking that time and paying overtime accordingly.

Today’s employees are on a constant search for work/life balance; it is a key factor in choosing an employer and, sometimes, the decision to leave. As a job requirement you could most likely require them to provide you with two ways to reach them and then suggest they provide a cell phone number and home email address; but requiring it might be a stretch. As long as they give you a way to reach them during off hours that should suffice.

Recordkeeping is one of the more mundane tasks associated with Human Resources, but is extremely important. Keeping documentation of corrective actions, counseling sessions and performance appraisals are vital to making sure you are being consistent with your disciplinary and performance policies. Strategic HR has a great online tool that’s affordable, easily downloaded and ready for immediate use. Our Coaching and Counseling toolkit has sample policies and forms to help you with your Counseling needs. Visit our Communications page to learn more.

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Handling Employee Pay when Bad Weather Hits

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Question:

With all the bad weather we have been having, how do I handle paying employees when our facilities are closed, or employees just don’t make it in because of the weather?

Answer:

No matter where you live, inclement weather is bound to affect your workforce at some point in time. How you handle it depends on whether employees are exempt or non-exempt.

For exempt employees, the Fair Labor Standards Act mandates that you cannot reduce the pay of an exempt employee for less than a full day. If the employee is willing and able to work, but the organization is closed, the Department of Labor has ruled that you must pay exempt employees for time missed when it is less than a week. You can however require an employee to use any available paid time off (i.e. vacation time), even if that remaining time has already been scheduled and approved for another time. But keep in mind the impact of doing so on employee morale. Even if an employee has no remaining PTO, the Department of Labor has clearly established that exempt employees must be paid their regular salary for time missed, when it is less than a week, due to facility closure. In the event you are open for business but an exempt employee does not report for work due to inclement weather, the FLSA does allow you do deduct a full day’s pay. Again, you may require them to use paid time off. In order to avoid the inevitable negative feelings on the part of the employee, many employers will just pay the day or allow the employee to work from home.

For non-exempt employees, there is no requirement to pay employees for time they have not actually worked. You might want to consider requiring or allowing employees to use PTO (to make up for lost wages) or allowing them to make up the time within the same work week.

The important thing is to have thought your policy through before the weather hits. In addition to compensation, determine how you will you communicate to your employees that the organization is closed due to bad weather or other misfortunes. By establishing a plan before the weather hits, you can minimize the disruption and uncertainty for employees.

For further guidance on the Fair Labor Standards Act, visit www.dol.gov.

It’s tough having to navigate the ever-changing FLSA laws and other federally mandated rules and regulations. Strategic HR can help. Ask us for assistance with any of your benefits and compensation needs. Please visit our Benefits & Compensation page for more information on any of these services.

How to Handle Bed Bugs at Work

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An employee has indicated that she has bedbugs in her apartment building. What responsibility do we have as an employer towards our other employees?

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