Fair Labor Standards Act: Trade Descriptions and Guides for Young People PDF

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The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a cornerstone of US labor law. This comprehensive guide, available in PDF, outlines trade descriptions and labor standards, particularly important for young people entering the workforce. It establishes crucial regulations regarding minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor, impacting both full-time and part-time workers across private, federal, state, and local government sectors. Understanding the FLSA is essential for young workers to ensure their rights are protected and for employers to maintain fair and legal workplaces.

Administered and enforced by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), the FLSA ensures compliance across private employment, state and local government roles, and specific federal employees. For other Executive Branch agencies, enforcement is managed by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, and for the Legislative Branch, by the U.S. Congress. It’s important to note that special provisions exist for state and local government roles, especially concerning fire protection, law enforcement, volunteer services, and compensatory time off. This guide serves as a vital resource, especially in PDF format, for young people seeking clarity on these regulations.

Basic Wage Standards

For covered, nonexempt workers, the current minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, effective since July 24, 2009. Specific wage rules apply in American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Beyond the standard 40-hour workweek, nonexempt employees are entitled to overtime pay, calculated at one and one-half times their regular pay rate. This is a crucial aspect of trade descriptions for young people entering various job sectors.

Wages mandated by the FLSA are payable on the regular payday for the corresponding pay period. Employers must be aware that deductions for shortages, uniforms, or tools cannot reduce an employee’s wage below the FLSA minimum wage or overtime requirements. These standards ensure fair labor practices and are detailed further in resources like Trade Descriptions And Guides For Young People Pdf.

While the FLSA sets fundamental wage and overtime standards and regulates youth employment, it’s important to recognize what it doesn’t cover. For instance, the FLSA does not mandate:

Vacation, holiday, severance, or sick pay.
Meal or rest periods, holidays off, or vacation time.
Premium pay for weekend or holiday work.
Pay raises or additional fringe benefits.
Discharge notices, reasons for termination, or immediate final wage payments to terminated employees.

The FLSA also does not handle wage payment or collection procedures for wages or commissions exceeding FLSA requirements. However, some states have their own laws addressing these claims, potentially including fringe benefits. It’s always advisable to consult state-specific labor laws in conjunction with this federal guide.

Furthermore, for employees 16 years and older, the FLSA does not limit the number of hours per day or week they can be required to work, including overtime. These aspects are typically determined through agreements between employers and employees or their representatives. This guide, and related trade descriptions for young people PDF resources, helps clarify these points for both parties.

Who is Covered?

FLSA coverage extends broadly. It includes employees in enterprises engaged in interstate commerce, producing goods for interstate commerce, or handling goods or materials moved in or produced for such commerce. This wide net ensures many businesses adhere to fair labor standards, as detailed in trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF.

A covered enterprise is defined by related activities under unified operation or common control, with a shared business purpose, and meeting one of these criteria:

Annual gross sales or business volume of at least $500,000 (excluding retail excise taxes).
Operation of hospitals, institutions for the sick, aged, or mentally ill residents; schools for disabled or gifted children; preschools, elementary or secondary schools, or higher education institutions (profit or nonprofit).
Activities of a public agency.

Enterprises covered by the FLSA on March 31, 1990, remain subject to overtime, child labor, and recordkeeping provisions even if they no longer meet the $500,000 threshold. This ensures continued protection for workers in these establishments.

Even if a firm isn’t a covered enterprise, individual employees may still be protected by FLSA if they are personally engaged in interstate commerce, goods production for interstate commerce, or closely related processes essential to such production. This includes workers in communications, transportation, those using interstate mail or phones, handling interstate goods, crossing state lines for work, or working for independent contractors serving interstate businesses. Understanding these coverage details is crucial, and guides for young people PDF can offer further clarification.

Domestic service workers, like day workers, housekeepers, chauffeurs, cooks, or full-time babysitters, are covered if:

Their cash wages from one employer in a calendar year (e.g., $1,700 in 2010, adjusted annually by the Social Security Administration) meet the threshold.
They work more than 8 hours weekly for one or more employers.

Tipped Employees

Employees who regularly receive over $30 a month in tips are considered tipped employees. Employers can count tips as part of wages but must pay a direct wage of at least $2.13 per hour. This system, while legal, requires transparency and adherence to regulations, which are often outlined in trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF format.

Employers using the tip credit must inform employees in advance and ensure that combined direct wages and tips meet the applicable minimum wage. If the total doesn’t reach the minimum hourly wage, the employer must cover the difference. Employees also retain all their tips, except in valid tip pooling or sharing arrangements. These regulations are designed to protect tipped workers, many of whom are young people in service industries.

Employer-Furnished Facilities

The cost or fair value of facilities like board and lodging, if customarily provided by the employer for the employee’s benefit, can be considered part of wages. This is a less common but still relevant aspect of wage calculation under the FLSA, and further details might be found in comprehensive trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF resources.

Industrial Homework

Certain types of work performed at home, known as industrial homework, are restricted under the FLSA. Prior DOL certification is required for employers in industries like knitted outerwear, gloves, mittens, buttons, buckles, handkerchiefs, embroideries, and jewelry (in non-hazardous conditions). Manufacturing women’s apparel (and jewelry in hazardous conditions) is generally prohibited. For questions about work restrictions or homework certificates, contacting the local WHD office is advised. This niche area of labor law is important for specific industries, and guides for young people PDF might touch upon these regulations if relevant to their career paths.

Subminimum Wage Provisions

The FLSA allows for subminimum wage employment for certain individuals to prevent limiting job opportunities. This includes student-learners (vocational education), full-time students in retail, service, agriculture, or higher education, and individuals with impaired earning capacity due to physical or mental disabilities. These arrangements require certificates from the WHD and are intended to support employment for these groups. Trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF may mention subminimum wage in the context of vocational training and student employment.

Youth Minimum Wage

For employees under 20, a youth minimum wage of $4.25 per hour is permitted for the first 90 consecutive calendar days of employment with an employer. However, employers cannot displace existing employees to hire workers at this lower wage. Partial displacements, like reducing hours or benefits, are also prohibited. This provision is specifically relevant to young people entering the workforce and is often highlighted in trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF.

Exemptions

Certain employees are exempt from FLSA overtime or both minimum wage and overtime provisions. Exemptions are narrowly defined, requiring employers to carefully review the specific terms and conditions for each. Detailed information is available from local WHD offices. Understanding these exemptions is crucial for employers and employees alike, and while this guide provides an overview, specific trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF may offer more tailored information for certain industries.

Examples of exemptions (non-inclusive and not defining all conditions):

Exemptions from Both Minimum Wage and Overtime Pay

Executive, administrative, and professional employees (including teachers and academic administrative personnel in elementary and secondary schools), outside sales employees, and employees in certain computer-related occupations (as defined in DOL regulations).
Employees of certain seasonal amusement or recreational establishments, small newspapers, seamen on foreign vessels, fishing operations, and newspaper delivery.
Farmworkers using no more than 500 “man-days” of farm labor in any calendar quarter of the preceding year.
Casual babysitters and companions to the elderly or infirm.

Exemptions from Overtime Pay Only

Certain commissioned employees of retail or service establishments; auto, truck, trailer, farm implement, boat, or aircraft sales-workers; or parts-clerks and mechanics servicing these vehicles at non-manufacturing establishments primarily selling to ultimate purchasers.
Railroad and air carrier employees, taxi drivers, certain motor carrier employees, seamen on American vessels, and local delivery employees on approved trip rate plans.
Announcers, news editors, and chief engineers at certain non-metropolitan broadcasting stations.
Domestic service workers living in the employer’s residence.
Employees of motion picture theaters.

Partial Exemptions from Overtime Pay

Partial overtime exemptions for employees in certain agricultural commodity operations and bulk petroleum distributors.
Hospitals and residential care facilities can adopt 14-day work periods with overtime paid after 8 hours daily or 80 hours in 14 days, whichever is greater, by employee agreement.
Employees without a high school diploma or 8th-grade education can spend up to 10 hours weekly in remedial training without overtime pay for those hours, if it’s not job-specific and they receive normal wages for training time.
Public agency fire and police departments can establish 7 to 28-day work periods for overtime pay calculations.

Child Labor Provisions

FLSA’s child labor provisions are crucial for protecting minors’ education and preventing employment in hazardous or unhealthy conditions. These rules include work hour restrictions for those under 16 and lists of hazardous occupations prohibited for minors in both farm and non-farm jobs, as determined by the Secretary of Labor. Further details on prohibited occupations are available at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/youthrules. This is a particularly relevant section for trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF, as it directly impacts youth employment options and limitations.

Nonagricultural Jobs (Child Labor)

Child labor regulations differ for non-farm and farm jobs. In non-farm roles, permissible jobs and hours by age are:

18 years and older: Any job, hazardous or not, unlimited hours.
16 and 17 years old: Any nonhazardous job, unlimited hours.
14 and 15 years old: Nonmanufacturing, nonmining, nonhazardous jobs outside school hours with restrictions: max 3 hours on school days, 18 hours in school weeks, 8 hours on non-school days, 40 hours in non-school weeks. Work hours: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (9 p.m. from June 1 to Labor Day). WECEP program participants (14 and 15) may work up to 23 hours in school weeks, 3 hours on school days. WSP program participants can work during school hours.

14 is the minimum age for most non-farm work. Exceptions include newspaper delivery, radio, TV, movie, or theatrical performances, work for parents in their sole non-farm business (excluding hazardous jobs), and gathering evergreens/making wreaths. These details are vital for young people seeking employment, and trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF often emphasize these age-based restrictions.

Farm Jobs (Child Labor)

In farm work, permissible jobs and hours by age are:

16 years and older: Any job, hazardous or not, unlimited hours.
14 and 15 years old: Any nonhazardous farm job outside school hours.
12 and 13 years old: Nonhazardous jobs outside school hours, with parental written consent or on a parent’s farm.
Under 12 years old: Jobs on parent-owned/operated farms or with parental written consent, outside school hours in nonhazardous jobs on farms exempt from minimum wage.

Minors of any age can work for their parents in any farm job on a parent-owned/operated farm. Farm labor laws are distinct, and resources like trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF focusing on agricultural careers would detail these rules.

Recordkeeping

The FLSA mandates employer recordkeeping on wages, hours, and other items, as per DOL regulations. This generally aligns with standard business practices. Specific records required for employees subject to minimum wage or both minimum wage and overtime include:

Personal information: name, address, occupation, sex, and birth date (if under 19).
Workweek start hour and day.
Total daily and weekly hours worked.
Total daily or weekly straight-time earnings.
Regular hourly pay rate (for overtime weeks).
Total overtime pay per workweek.
Wage deductions or additions.
Total wages paid each pay period.
Payment date and pay period covered.

Recordkeeping requirements differ for exempt vs. nonexempt employees and have special provisions for homeworkers, uncommon pay arrangements, lodging/facilities, and remedial education. Accurate recordkeeping is essential for FLSA compliance, and employers can find detailed guidance in resources like trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF.

Nursing Employees

Most nursing employees have the right to reasonable break time and a private, non-bathroom space to pump breast milk for one year after childbirth, each time they need to pump. Employers cannot deny these necessary breaks.

Break time should be reasonable and as frequent as needed. Frequency and duration vary. The pumping space must be private, shielded from view, and free from intrusion, and functional as a pumping area. A bathroom is not permissible. Temporary or converted spaces are acceptable if private and intrusion-free.

Airline, railroad, and motorcoach carrier employees may be exempt from these federal protections but may have state or local protections. Employers with under 50 employees may be exempt if compliance causes undue hardship, assessed based on difficulty/expense relative to business size and resources. All employees are counted for this exemption, regardless of work site.

Pump break time is generally unpaid unless otherwise required by law or if the employee is not fully relieved of duty during the break. Paid breaks used for pumping must be compensated. Exempt employees’ salaries generally cannot be reduced for pump breaks. State or local laws may offer greater protections, such as paid breaks or longer break time duration. Understanding nursing employee rights is important for workplace equity, and guides for young people PDF aimed at young parents entering the workforce may include this information.

Terms Used in FLSA

Workweek: A fixed 168-hour period over 7 consecutive 24-hour periods, starting on any day and hour set by the employer. Each workweek is independent for minimum wage and overtime purposes; averaging workweeks is not allowed. Coverage, wage payment compliance, and most exemptions are workweek-based.

Hours Worked: Includes all time an employee is required to be on duty, on the employer’s premises, or at a prescribed work location, from the start of the first principal activity to the end of the last principal activity. It also includes any additional time the employee is allowed or permitted to work. These definitions are foundational for understanding FLSA compliance, and resources like trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF will often clarify these terms.

Computing Overtime Pay

Overtime pay is at least one and one-half times the regular pay rate for hours exceeding the maximum allowable in a workweek (generally 40 hours). The regular rate includes most employer payments to or for the employee, excluding certain statutory exclusions. The following examples illustrate overtime calculation for a 40-hour workweek:

Hourly rate: For hours over 40, pay at least 1.5 times the regular rate.
Example: $8/hour, 44 hours worked. Overtime rate: $12/hour (1.5 x $8). Pay: (40 hours x $8) + (4 hours x $12) = $368.
Piece rate: Regular rate is total weekly earnings divided by total hours worked. Overtime is an additional 0.5 times this regular rate for each hour over 40, plus piecework earnings. Alternatively, by prior agreement, pay 1.5 times the piece rate for each piece produced during overtime hours (piece rate must yield at least minimum wage).
Example: $405 earned for 45 hours piecework. Regular rate: $405 / 45 = $9/hour. Overtime pay: 5 hours x ($9/2) = $22.50. Total pay: $405 + $22.50 = $427.50.
Salary: Regular rate is salary divided by hours the salary is intended to compensate. Overtime is an additional 0.5 times this regular rate for each hour over 40, plus the salary. If salary covers all hours worked, regular rate is salary divided by actual hours worked each week (varying regular rate in overtime weeks). Regular rate must always be at least minimum wage. For non-weekly salaries, convert to weekly equivalent to calculate regular rate and overtime.

Example: Fixed $480 weekly salary for varying hours. Week 1: 50 hours. Regular rate: $480 / 50 = $9.60/hour. Overtime: 10 hours x ($9.60/2) = $48. Total pay: $480 + $48 = $528. Week 2: 60 hours. Regular rate: $480 / 60 = $8/hour. Overtime: 20 hours x ($8/2) = $80. Total pay: $480 + $80 = $560.

These calculations are essential for ensuring accurate pay, and trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF may include simplified examples for easier understanding.

Enforcement Through Investigation

WHD enforces FLSA through investigators nationwide who gather data on wages, hours, and employment conditions to ensure compliance, regardless of workers’ immigration status. They recommend practice changes to employers to achieve compliance when violations are found.

Enforcement Through Legal Remedies

FLSA allows the Department of Labor or employees to recover back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages for minimum wage and overtime violations. A 2-year statute of limitations generally applies, extending to 3 years for willful violations. Remedies can be pursued through administrative procedures, litigation, and/or criminal prosecution.

Administrative procedures:

DOL can supervise payment of unpaid minimum wages and/or overtime.
DOL may seek back wages and liquidated damages through settlements instead of litigation.
Civil money penalties may be assessed for child labor violations and repeat/willful FLSA minimum wage or overtime violations. Willful or repeated violations of minimum wage or overtime are subject to penalties per violation. Child labor violations may also incur civil money penalties, increased for violations causing minor death or serious injury, and doubled if willful or repeated. Current penalty amounts are at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/flsa#cmp.

Litigation procedures:

DOL can sue on behalf of employees for back wages, liquidated damages, and civil money penalties.
DOL can seek U.S. District Court injunctions to restrain violations like unlawful withholding of wages, failure to keep records, and retaliation against complainants.
DOL may seek civil money penalty orders from a DOL Administrative Law Judge.
Employees can file private suits for back wages, liquidated damages, attorney’s fees, and court costs. DOL will not pursue the same claims in such cases.
DOL can seek a U.S. District Court order to prevent shipment of affected goods.

Criminal prosecution:

Willful FLSA violations can lead to criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment.

Enforcement mechanisms are crucial for the FLSA’s effectiveness, and young workers should be aware of these protections, as highlighted in trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF.

Retaliation is Prohibited

Discrimination or discharge against employees for filing complaints or providing information is illegal. Employees facing adverse actions for protected activity, or the Secretary of Labor, can sue for relief, including job reinstatement, lost wages, and damages. This protection against retaliation is a key employee right under the FLSA, and it’s an important point to emphasize in trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF.

Other Labor Laws

Besides the FLSA, WHD enforces other labor laws. More information on the FLSA and other WHD-administered laws is available via the toll-free help line 1-866-4US-WAGE (1-866-487-9243) or the WHD website: www.dol.gov/agencies/whd. This broader context of labor laws is useful for young people to understand their workplace rights comprehensively, and resources like trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF might provide links to further information.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA)

SBREFA established a National Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Ombudsman and Regional Fairness Boards to receive small entity comments on federal agency enforcement. The Ombudsman evaluates agency enforcement and responsiveness to small entities annually. Small entities can comment on WHD enforcement by calling 1-888-REG-FAIR (1-888-734-3247), writing to the Office of the National Ombudsman, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 3rd Street, SW, MC2120, Washington, DC 20416-0005, or visiting www.sba.gov/ombudsman/. This right to comment is additional to other rights and doesn’t extend penalty contest deadlines or replace required hearing responses. WHD doesn’t consider Ombudsman comments in resolving compliance issues. Small businesses, especially those employing young workers, should be aware of these resources, and trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF for entrepreneurs might include SBREFA information.

Equal Pay Provisions

FLSA’s equal pay provisions prohibit sex-based wage differences for equal work within the same establishment, requiring equal skill, effort, responsibility, and similar working conditions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces these provisions and other anti-discrimination statutes. More information is at 1-800-669-4000 or www.eeoc.gov. Equal pay is a fundamental right, and trade descriptions and guides for young people PDF promoting workplace fairness would certainly address this aspect.