The FLSA does cover:
Minimum
wage and overtime
- federal minimum wage is $5.15 per - overtime is generally at
time-and-a-half for all hours worked in excess of 40 in a seven-day
workweek. Individual state minimum wage laws do not apply unless the
FLSA does not apply - for all practical purposes, businesses can
assume that all of their employees are covered under the federal wage
and hour laws
Equal
pay for men and women
- - Equal Pay Act - men and women who perform the same job at the
same levels of skill, experience, and responsibility must be paid the
same - this is not the same as "equal pay for comparable
work", a rule followed by only a handful of individual states -
violation of this law raises a gender discrimination issue, which is
why complaints are investigated by the EEOC
Child labor - in most situations, children younger than 14 may not work for an employer. Children ages 14 and 15 may work, but only in non-hazardous occupations and only during non-school hours; there is also a substantial limitation on the number of hours they can work each day and week. Children ages 16 and 17 may work any hours they want, but may not work in hazardous occupations. Once a person reaches age 18, there is no limitation on either hours or duties.
The FLSA does not require:
Optional employee benefits and payroll practices not required under any law include such things as:
breaks
- although some states require breaks, most (including Texas) do not
- federal law has no break requirement - the only exceptions are
found in OSHA regulations relating to highly hazardous occupations
such as high-altitude steel erection workers or nuclear plant workers
- most companies do allow some sort of breaks, however
"coffee
breaks" (rest breaks)
are paid, since they are regarded as promoting productivity and
efficiency on the part of employees and thus benefit the employer -
20 minutes or less in duration
"lunch
breaks" are unpaid
- defined as 30 minutes or longer for the purpose of eating a meal -
employee must be "fully relieved of duties" during the meal
break – if employee is answering phones, filing, or otherwise
working while eating, the "break" is counted as regular
work time
premium,
holiday, and weekend pay
- this is extra pay for unusual hours, such as "double time"
or "triple time" pay for working extra overtime or during
times when most employees take off - this is not required under any
law, but is often a matter of supply and demand, i.e., whatever is
necessary to get employees to be available at unusual times
shift
differentials
- defined as higher hourly pay for second or third shifts, as opposed
to the normal hourly rate given to workers on the daytime shift - as
with "premium pay" above, this is a function of supply and demand
raises
- not required under state or federal laws, unless the minimum wage
is increased on either the federal or the state level. However, even
though raises are not required, withdrawing a raise that has
previously been promised could give an employee good cause to quit.
Important: once a raise goes into effect, the employer must pay it
until it is withdrawn - it may be withdrawn only prospectively, never
retroactively - a retroactive pay cut will always violate the law
paid
leave
– such as vacation, sick, or parental leave pay or
"PTO" (paid time off) - not required under Texas or federal
laws – however, if such paid leave is promised in a written
policy or agreement, it is an enforceable part of the wage agreement
under the Texas Payday Law
paid
holidays
- not required under Texas or federal laws – however, if a paid
holiday is promised in a written policy or agreement, it is an
enforceable part of the wage agreement under the Texas Payday Law
severance
pay
- not required under Texas or federal laws – however, if
severance pay is promised in a written policy or agreement, it is an
enforceable part of the wage agreement under the Texas Payday Law
– it will be enforced according to the specific terms of the
severance pay agreement or policy
pensions - pension or retirement plans are not required - however, keep the "1000-hour rule" in mind in case you have a pension plan and any workers who work at least 1000 hours in a 12-month period
