#WorkforceWednesday®: DOL Authority Challenged - Key Rulings on Overtime and Tip Credit - Employment Law This Week®
FLSA and Wage and Hour Issues for Restaurants
#WorkforceWednesday: EEOC Withdraws, DOL Rolls Back, and OSHA Expands - Employment Law This Week®
Employment Law This Week®: SCOTUS Vacates Pay-Equity Ruling, NYC Bans Grooming Policy Restrictions, Tip Credit Rule, Workplace Gossip, AI in HR
II-30- Tackling 3 Big Wage and Hour Questions for Employers
I-16 – Kneeling, Indefinite Leave, DC Updates, Non-Compete Consideration, and Pretty as a Protected Class
Employment Law This Week®: D.C. Policy Update, Wage and Hour Administrator Nominee, DOL’s 80/20 Rule
In November 2022, voters in Washington, D.C., approved Initiative 82, the “District of Columbia Tip Credit Elimination Act of 2022,” which set forth a gradual elimination of the use of the tip credit in the District by 2027. ...more
Most employers are prepared for new laws at the start of each year – but did you know that a heap of new workplace laws take effect at the halfway point? Here’s your employer cheat sheet to prepare for July 1 effective dates…...more
The District of Columbia passed emergency legislation on June 3, 2025 that paused an increase to the tipped minimum wage from $10 per hour to $12 per hour, which was originally set to take effect on July 1, 2025. At least for...more
Colorado has enacted House Bill 25-1001, which significantly amends the state’s wage and hour laws by enhancing enforcement mechanisms, expanding employer liability, and strengthening employee protections. The law will take...more
New York restaurant owners must navigate complex tip pooling and tip credit regulations to ensure compliance with federal and state labor laws. Failure to follow these rules can result in lawsuits, back wages, and penalties....more
Many employers in hospitality and other service industries take the tip credit toward their minimum wage obligation under federal wage and hour law – but complying with evolving rules has been challenging in recent years....more
New Jersey stands at a crossroads regarding the compensation of tipped workers. Introduced on March 10, 2025, Assembly Bill A5433 proposes a significant change to the New Jersey Wage and Hour Law: phasing out the “tip...more
In January, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued an opinion letter clarifying managers and supervisors still cannot receive or keep tips, including from a tip pool. This came shortly after the DOL restored the dual...more
On February 21, 2025, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed Senate Bill 8 and House Bill 4002, which, effective immediately, revise minimum wage, tip, and paid sick leave standards Michigan employers were expecting to take effect...more
The City of Boulder has enacted its own local minimum wage ordinance, which took effect January 1, 2025, setting the city’s minimum wage at $15.57 per hour. The new law adds another challenge to multi-jurisdiction compliance...more
Once again, we rang in the new year with a great many state and local minimum wage increases. This year, 23 states—and several counties and cities—will increase their minimum wages and, where applicable, tipped minimum...more
If you take the tip credit for employees that receive gratuities, you’ll want to review your policies and practices in light of Monday’s game-changing announcement from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The Department...more
Hinckley Allen’s Labor & Employment Group invites you to our fifth virtual Lunch & Learn program. We’ll cover various topics, including: - Potential policy changes under the new Trump administration...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule on Dec. 17, 2024, restoring the pre-2021 language of the “dual jobs” regulation for tipped employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This is a technical...more
While Americans across the country headed to the polls to decide who would govern their country, state, county, or city, most decisions were already made concerning what minimum pay rate would govern the employment of...more
On election day Massachusetts voters were given the opportunity to vote on the Fair Wage for Tipped Workers Act, a ballot measure, referred to as Question 5, that would have gradually increased pay for tipped workers until it...more
On Election Day 2024, voters in six states weighed in on ballot initiatives that addressed several employment law topics....more
In the recent Massachusetts state election, voters faced a pivotal decision on a ballot initiative aiming to eliminate the tip credit system. The proposal sought to require employers to pay tipped employees the full state...more
Should tipped employees be paid the full minimum wage? Massachusetts residents voted a resounding “No” and rejected a proposed change to the state’s minimum wage law that would have required tipped employees to be paid 100%...more
Employers with tipped employees are constantly trying to keep up with the ever-changing and evolving tip credit rules promulgated by the United States Department of Labor (DOL) — specifically, what is known as the 80/20 rule....more
In a highly anticipated decision published on August 23, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Final Rule that limited the circumstances under which an...more
On September 18, 2024, at the request of the State of Michigan and its attorney general, the Michigan Supreme Court clarified issues relating to future minimum wage rates and minimum cash wage rates for tip-credit employees...more
On Aug. 23, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals invalidated the DOL’s 2021 rule on tip credits under the Fair Labor Standards Act. While the tip credit lives on, the Fifth Circuit’s ruling simplifies compliance for many...more
On August 23, 2024, the Fifth Circuit, in Restaurant Law Center v. U.S. Department of Labor, No. 23-50562 (Aug. 23, 2024), struck down the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) 2021 rule restricting an employer’s ability to claim tip...more
A trio of cases before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit have challenged the core of US Department of Labor rulemaking. With varying levels of success. Restaurant Law Center v. DOL pertains to the DOL’s...more