The following language from Garner v. Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, 2011 WL 5967244 (S.D.Tex.) provides an excellent overview of the FLSA:

The FLSA mandates that employers pay overtime compensation for nonexempt employees.FN7 Rainey v. McWane, Inc., 314 Fed. Appx. 693, 694 (5th Cir. Mar.12, 2009), citing 29 U.S.C. § 207(a). The FLSA, 29 U.S.C. § 207(a)(1), generally requires an employer to pay employees who work more than forty hours per seven-day work week at a rate not less than one and one-half times the employee’s regular rate. Allen v. Coil Tubing Servs., LLC, Civ. A. No. H–08–3370, 2011 WL 4916003, *5 (S.D.Tex. Oct.17, 2011); Vela v. City of Houston, 276 F.3d 659, 666 (5th Cir.2001); Thibodeaux v. Executive Jet Intern., Inc., 328 F.3d 742, 749 (5th Cir.2003). Under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b), an employer who violates the FLSA shall be liable for “unpaid overtime compensation … and in an additional equal amount as liquidated damages.” Moreover any person who repeatedly or willfully violatesSection 206 or 207, relating to wages, shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $1,100 for each such violation.” 29 U.S.C. § 216(e)(2).FN8

FN7. Section 207(a) does not apply to those “employed in bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacity.” Rainey, 314 Fed. Appx. at 694–5, citing 29 U.S.C. § 213(a)(1). Exemption is narrowly construed against the employer, and the employer bears the burden of demonstrating that an employee is exempt. Tyler v. Union Oil Co. of Cal., 304 F.3d 379, 402 (5th Cir.2002), citing Dalheim v. KDFW–TV, 918 F.2d 1220, 1224 (5th Cir.1990). Whether an employee is exempt or not exempt under FLSA is mainly a fact issue determined by his salary and duties and applications of the factors in 29 C.F.R. § 541.200(a), but the ultimate decision is a question of law. Lott v. Howard Wilson Chrysler–Plymouth, Inc., 203 F.3d 326, 330–31 (5th Cir.2000); McKee v. CBF Corp., 299 Fed. Appx. 426, 429 (5th Cir. Nov.17, 2008). For discussion of exemptions see, e.g., Thibodeaux, 328 F.3d 742; Vela, 276 F.3d 659. There is no dispute in the instant case that Garner was a nonexempt employee. Continue reading →

the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
EEOC Office of Legal Counsel staff members wrote the following letter to respond to a request for public comment from a federal agency or department. This letter is an informal discussion of the noted issue and does not constitute an official opinion of the Commission.

ADA: Qualification Standards; Disparate Impact

November 17, 2011

[ADDRESS]

Dear ____:

This is in response to your letter, dated October 9, 2009, and postmarked October 12, 2011, asking whether the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA), prohibits the State of Tennessee from requiring students with learning disabilities to take “Gateway tests” or “end-of-course assessments” in order to receive their full high school diplomas. We responded to the same inquiry when we received it in December of 2010, by referring you to the Department of Education. Please find the earlier response attached. Continue reading →

Dodge’s Chicken To Pay $190,000 To Former Employee Fired After Seizures.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – D&H Company, Dodge Brothers, Inc., and Giant Oil Company of Arkansas, Inc., doing business as Savings Station Dodge Stores and Dodge’s Chicken Store, will pay $190,000 to settle a disability lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today. Continue reading →

Congressional Bill Would Limit IT Worker Overtime Pay.

7 keys to slaying sexual harassment.

EEOC questions necessity of high school degree as employment requirement | Business Insurance.

The Laura and John Arnold Foundation (LJAF) today released a policy solution paper, Creating a New Public Pension System, outlining effective alternatives to the current pension system that is putting enormous and increasing financial stress on state and local budgets across the nation.
Experts estimate the unfunded pension liabilities at $3 trillion for state-run plans. This figure does not include city-run plans, many of which are facing even more acute problems.
In the paper, LJAF’s Vice President for Public Accountability Initiatives, Dr. Josh McGee, highlights both the source of the problems as well as effective and sustainable solutions that transcend traditional policy perspectives.
“It is time for our political leaders to embrace their responsibility and address the acute underfunding of public employee benefits,” says Dr. McGee. “Failing to do so would lead to severe economic consequences for both public workers and taxpayers alike.”
The paper highlights three structural problems that must be addressed in order to create a sound, sustainable, and fair retirement savings system for public employees: unpredictable costs, incentive to underfund, and labor market distortions.
Dr. McGee also outlines key criteria for sound public pension reform: establishment of transparency with respect to the true cost of the benefits promised to public employees; a mandate that the state or municipality pay the full cost of accrued benefits each year; a mandate that the pension plan sponsor pay down the unfunded accrued liability over a reasonable time horizon; and an improvement of the generational equity, portability, and security of benefits for public employees.
LJAF actively seeks opportunities to invest in states and municipalities where leaders have a sincere interest in implementing fundamental reforms that fully address the cost, incentive, and labor market problems created by the current public pension system. LJAF welcomes the opportunity to be a resource to those leaders that share this goal.
The full paper can be found HERE.
The Laura and John Arnold Foundation is a private foundation that currently focuses on criminal justice, education, and public accountability reform. LJAF has offices in Houston and New York City.

On November 16, 2011, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), by a 3-2 vote, approved a draft final regulation redefining the “reasonable factors other than age” (“RFOA”) defense under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”). The proposed regulation has been sent to the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) for review and approval. One of many aspects of the revised regulations is that, if adopted, they make it easier for plaintiffs to pursue disparate impact claims under the ADEA. The draft final regulations can be accessed at http___edocket.access.gpo.gov_2010_2010-3126.

Business & Technology | Boeing, union seal deal for jets, jobs, peace | Seattle Times Newspaper.

The landmark agreement unveiled Wednesday by the Machinists union and Boeing should secure thousands of local jobs, end the simmering NLRB lawsuit, and offer an unexpected Christmas bonus to start off a four-year contract extension.

Beyond all that, though, the surprise pact may signify a new era for two forces whose bitter adversarial relationship and recurring clashes have repeatedly shaken the region and endangered one of its economic cornerstones.