The COVID-19 pandemic brought the Fair Labor Standards Act to center stage.  Massive amounts of telecommuting, thrust on us in March, has resulted in a paradigm shift away from workplaces and into employees’ homes. Concurrently, the gig economy also has mushroomed as a result of the pandemic. Outfits, such as Instacart have grown exponentially with most “shoppers” classified as independent contractors.

Alert to these paradigm shifts in how America does business and businesses manage their workforces, the US Department of Labor has responded with major policy initiatives.  In late August, the Administrator of the Wage & Hour Division issued crucial guidance on how employers can comply with the FLSA’s record-keeping requirements in the “new normal” of teleworking.

Then in late September, the Department issued proposed regulations which, if adopted, will lighten the burden of determining when workers are legitimately independent contractors, as opposed to being your employees.

Learning Objectives:-

• How to comply with the Wage & Hour Division’s record-keeping requirements in the brave new world of permanent teleworking
• What you can and cannot do if your teleworkers perform unauthorized work and want to be paid for it
• What are the major tests of independent-contractor status currently in force?
• What are the changes in the FLSA’s independent-contractor test and how do these changes bode well for American business.

Areas Covered:-

• Overview of the Fair Labor Standards Act
• A detailed review of the August 24th Guidance on complying with the FLSA’s time-keeping requirements for teleworkers
• A detailed discussion of the major test of independent-contractor status
• Review of recent cases challenging the independent-contractor status
• Detailed examination of the DOL’s September 22nd proposed regulations  redefining the term “independent contractor”
• How to keep track of teleworkers’ recordable working time
• Similarities and differences between salaried (exempt) employees and independent contractors
• Sample policies and contract provisions for teleworkers and independent contractors.

Key Points:-

• My employees, who have been working from home want to stay there, while I want to recall them.
• I believe some of my teleworkers are cheating on their time records.  How can I prove it and what can I do about it?
• Our business relies on independent contractors to operate.  How can I be sure they are correctly classified?

Why Should You Attend?

• Are our independent contractors correctly classified?
• What can happen if we’ve incorrectly classified employees as independent contractors?
• How can I be sure that my teleworkers are correctly recording their hours' works?
• What can I do about it, if they are stealing time?
• Institute policies and procedures to manage teleworker record-keeping requirements
• Evaluate whether workers are employees or independent contractors

Who Should Attend?

• Human Resources
• Payroll
• In-house Counsel
• Managers
• Supervisors