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FLSA sets basic standards for Minimum wages and Overtime Pay, at the same time an employer needs to check with the state laws which have even more stringent requirements of wage and hour laws to follow. The employer covered under FLSA needs to comply with federal as well as State and Local laws and the law that is most beneficial to an employee must be followed. Even a company is insured under Employment practices liability insurance (EPLI) which covers businesses against many claims made by workers, legally where the company(employer) has violated laws in such areas, and still may not cover wage and hour issues. So, in order to be compliant and avoid back wages, an employer has to adhere to the wage and hours requirements for the purposes of FLSA. Generally, the manager or the business(company) owner is more likely to be in an authority position who is liable for wage and hours practices in a company. Their conduct of doing business impacts the good faith of the company, if the employer does willful violations under FLSA may be subject to criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment. The employer is liable to back pay penalties depending on the seriousness of the violation.

Department of Labor Audits

Authorized representatives from the Wage and Hour Department conduct investigations and gather data on wages, hours worked and other employment conditions or practices, in order to determine an enterprise or employer’s compliance with the FLSA law. Investigators may recommend changes in employment practices where violations are found to bring an employer into compliance.
Note: To fire, or in any other manner, discriminate against an employee for filing a complaint or for participating in a legal proceeding required for the purposes of FLSA regulations is a violation of the FLSA

Penalties for violations of FLSA

  • Employers who willfully or repeatedly violate the minimum wage or overtime pay requirements are subject to a civil money penalty of up to $1,000 for each such violation.
  • Violators of the child labor provisions are subject to a civil money penalty of up to $10,000 for each young worker who was employed in violation.
  • Willful violations of the FLSA may result in criminal prosecution and the violator fined up to $10,000. A second conviction may result in imprisonment.

Tips to be Complaint

The thumb rule for avoiding FLSA non-compliance is to make the best practice of complying with accurate record-keeping, payroll records and time-tracking of employees, the proper classification of employees, and providing applicable FLSA minimum wages and overtime pay threshold to employees in adherence to both federal and state law.
These requirements may seem like very simple and straightforward issues, but in reality, legal requirements are very confusing and often complex when it comes to the point of compliance and these laws are subject to frequent regulatory changes.
Source of Information: https://www.dol.gov/