By Valerie L .Rodriguez and Catherine M. Dacre

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The Supreme Court’s decision in Iqbal on the requirement of specificity in pleading provided the guidance that “determining whether a plausible claim has been pled is a context-specific task that requires the reviewing court to draw on its judicial experience and common sense.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 663-64

Continue Reading FLSA Pleading:  Mathematical Precision Not Required

By Robert S. Whitman and Kyle D. Winnick

In Perry et al. v. City of New York, the Second Circuit upheld a large jury verdict in favor of a collective of workers regarding off-the-clock work.  In doing so, the Court reaffirmed the principle that employers will ordinarily not be liable under the FLSA when employees fail to follow a reasonable

Continue Reading Second Circuit Addresses Off-The-Clock Work

By Kevin YoungBrett BartlettScott HeckerNoah Finkel, and Leon Rodriguez

Seyfarth Synopsis: Just days before Labor Day, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) unveiled its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”), aimed at revising the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime exemptions for executive, administrative, and professional employees. While the proposal—the cornerstone of which is

Continue Reading DOL Delivers a Proposed Salary Bump to FLSA Overtime Thresholds for Labor Day

By Annette IdalskiKyle WinnickA. Scott Hecker, and Ethan Goemann

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court held that highly-compensated employees paid solely on a day rate must meet the so-called “reasonable relationship test” to satisfy the salary basis requirement.

In Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt, the Supreme Court considered whether a day-rate employee

Continue Reading Supreme Court Holds That Highly-Compensated Employees Solely Paid a Day Rate Must Meet Reasonable Relationship Test

Seyfarth Synopsis: Hey, look what our very impressive colleagues in the Wage & Hour Group have made available. Everything you ever wanted to know (and a bunch of stuff you should, but didn’t know) about the FLSA is now available in one book. Order yours today!

The Seyfarth Shaw Wage Hour Litigation Practice Group is pleased to provide you
Continue Reading Now Available! FLSA Handbook February 2021

By Noah A. Finkel

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals last week affirmed a district court’s denial of class certification of a state overtime claim on numerosity grounds, reasoning that the touchstone for that element is whether joinder of putative class members is practicable, and a factor to consider is how easily the plaintiff could contact those

Continue Reading Did the 7th Circuit Just Provide a New Avenue to Defeat Certification of a State Law Overtime Claim?

By Romtin Parvaresh and Daniel C. Whang

Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently became the seventh federal appellate court to hold that the standard for “willful” violations under the Family and Medical Leave Act is whether the employer knows or shows reckless disregard for whether its conduct violates the FMLA.

The Ninth Circuit’s
Continue Reading Majority of Federal Courts Now Agree on Standard for Willful Violations of FMLA

By Camille A. Olson, Richard B. Lapp, Louisa J. Johnson, and Andrew M. McKinley

Seyfarth Synopsis: With the growth of the gig economy, the increased desire of some workers to control their own work hours to ensure a work-life balance, and the evolution of the modern workplace to one in which workers rarely retain one full-time
Continue Reading US DOL Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractor Status Under the FLSA

By Alex Passantino

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division announced its long-awaited proposed rule related to the FLSA’s tip provisions. The rule would implement statutory changes passed in March 2018; it also would elevate certain WHD policy guidance into regulation.

The legislative changes come from the Tip Income Protection Act, which was passed as part of

Continue Reading WHD Releases Proposed Rule on Tipped Employees

By Alexander J. Passantino

Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Department of Labor announced its final rule updating and revising the regulations issued under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regarding the earnings thresholds necessary to exempt executive, administrative or professional employees from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime pay requirements. The Department simultaneously announced its formal rescission of the 2016
Continue Reading Part 541 Salary Level Increases to $684/Week