Question: We are offering non-paid positions (volunteer work) to interns (PhD students) working at the office on research projects, collecting data and conducting study projects. What liabilities do we need to be aware of as these volunteer interns will be working on company premises? Answer: First of all, the biggest issue you face is the …
Question: Our employees have a union and the union is requesting employee names, addresses, and home phone numbers of employees in our bargaining units. Are we required to give them this information, or just the employee names? Answer: We assume that you have already checked the labor-management contract with this union to determine if the …
Question: Does the loss of COBRA due to employees becoming entitled to Medicare create a second qualifying event for the dependents? Answer: Under the federal COBRA rules, an 18-month extension may be available to qualified beneficiaries when the employee becomes entitled to Medicare (providing for a total maximum 36 months of COBRA). According to the …
Question: How does a California employer compensate a nonexempt employee for overnight trips? Answer: This is a lengthy answer to a complicated topic with both California wage and hour rules and federal rules that apply to the issue. Under both the California and federal Fair Labor Standards Act rules, the definition of “hours worked” is …
Question: Are we required to include holidays and vacations in the calculation for overtime pay? Answer: You are only required to count those hours that your employees actually work for the FLSA’s 40-hour overtime threshold. If employees don’t perform any work on a holiday, vacation, or sick day, you would not count this time when …
Question: Can we ask employees to sign an agreement allowing us to withhold pay from their final paychecks for unearned sick or vacation days that we paid in advance? Answer: You can ask employees to sign an acknowledgment that the vacation or sick pay they’ll receive hasn’t yet been earned, and that they’ll be required …
Question: How does an employer handle benefits for an employee returning from FMLA and requesting part-time work, making the employee ineligible for benefits under the employer’s plans? Answer: Employees working less than 30 hours per week are ineligible for benefits on the employer’s plan, and the employee is voluntarily requesting a schedule of less than …
Question: How does a California employer with less than 50 employees handle pregnancy leave for an employee hired 2 months ago? Answer: Given the fact that the employer has less than 50 employees, neither the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) nor the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) applies. The California Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) …
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