By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney
My employer clients often ask me if they can be held liable for injuries or damages caused by their employees while they are working. Whenever I begin discussing this question with my clients I always like to start with a scene from the movie, Joe Somebody. Here is the scene:
JEREMY I’m gone for three days and employees are fighting like schoolkids in the parking lot. This McKinney, I know everybody hates that big jerk. But this Joe “Shepherd”
Misrepresentation is just another word for fraud. Misrepresentation, either intentional or through negligence simply means there was a failure to communicate. This section will first define the types of misrepresentation that exist in Idaho and will then discuss the basic elements of agency law, which is required for liability to rest on the employer.
There are two basic kinds of misrepresentation: intentional and negligent. Intentional misrepresentation is where a person essentially, knowingly tells a lie. Negligent misrepresentation occurs when a person either simply doesn’t bother to learn first whether the things they are saying are true or they believe something to be true that isn’t and they then represent these things to others. They aren’t intentionally deceiving anyone but what they are saying isn’t true.
Scene from the movie Judge Dredd:
PROSECUTOR: The D.N.A. is a perfect match for Judge Joseph Dredd.
There is a difference between an employee and an independent contractor under both federal and state law. Under applicable laws, an employee qualifies for protection and is guaranteed a certain minimum wage and possibly overtime pay. On the other hand, an independent contractor does not enjoy these protections but is entitled to receive the terms and conditions of his contractual agreement. The reason for this is that the independent contractor is in a position to negotiate the terms and conditions of the contract, including how, when, and how much they will be paid. One of the main questions I am asked by my clients is whether a person is an independent contract or an employee.
An independent contractor is a person who retains control of the job that is to be done. The best example that can be given is that of building a house. In this scenario there is usually a general contractor who agrees with the home buyer to build a certain home, in a certain location within a certain amount of time. This general contractor often hires subcontractors to complete specific types of jobs on the home such as installation of the plumbing or the electrical wires. A subcontractor is nothing more than an independent contractor.
The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sets minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards for employment subject to its provisions. Unless exempt, covered employees must be paid at least the minimum wage and not less than one and one-half times their regular rates of pay for overtime hours worked. To compute which employees are entitled to receive these benefits, every covered employer must keep certain records for each non-exempt worker.
THE SPECIFIC RECORDS TO BE KEPT
While the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) specifies minimum wage, overtime hours and child labor laws, it leaves to each of the individual states the responsibility of creating and enforcing the laws associated with basic wage and hour compliance. In other words, states are left with the responsibility of legislating and creating laws dealing with how and when an employee is paid and the procedures and processes of what an employee can do when they are not properly paid. Idaho has done this by enacting Title 44 of the Idaho Code which contains statutes dealing with various ware and hour issues such as: minimum wage, hours worked and child labor laws.
Idaho has also enacted Idaho Code §§ 45-601 et seq., concerning an employee’s claim for wages and the processes and procedures an employee can use to seek to obtain their wages from the employer.
Most employees and employers have heard of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) but most people don’t understand what it is or how it works. In summary, the FMLA provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. What this means is that if an employee qualifies under the FMLA, they can be absent from their job with an assurance that their job will still be there for them when they return. Essentially, it is a limitation on the almost ever present “at will” law which says that an employer can terminate an employee’s employment at any time for any reason, so long as it is not for an illegal reason.
The FMLA was created to protect and help employees balance their health, work and family responsibilities. he FMLA allows employees to take unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons.
During my work as an employment law attorney I often have employers ask whether the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) applies to those employees they have who receive and are paid through tips. The purpose of this post is to identify and describe the requirements of the FLSA to employees who receive tips.
According to the United State Department of Labor,
As an employment law attorney, my clients often ask questions related to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Most recently, I seem to be getting many questions about whether breaks are required to be given to employees. The purpose of this blog is to provide a short summary of what the law requires with regards to providing breaks to employees.
Currently, federal law does not require lunch or coffee breaks to be given to employees. Like most other benefits provided by employers, there is no specific requirement that they be given. Many employers offer these type of breaks to their employees though as a benefit and as a way of enticing their employees to remain employed with the employer. Imagine a prospective employee evaluating two different job opportunities and seeing that one job does not offer any type of breaks including a lunch break during the work day. Under this circumstance it is fairly easy to see which job it is likely the employee would take. Employers know that in order to entice prospective employees and to keep current employees happy, these types of benefits must be provided.
Nearly everyone with a hand in employment law is familiar that a change to the Fair Labor Standards Act will take place the end of this year which will have an impact on who qualifies to earn overtime pay. This change is known as the “Final Rule”. The Final Rule focuses primarily on updating the salary and compensation levels needed for workers to be exempt from overtime pay.
SUMMARY OF CHANGES
Idaho Law Blog