Diving:
- The new year will sound like minimum wage increases in 21 states, with 4 more states and the District of Columbia will implement increases later in 2021, according to Paycor.
- The highest minimum wage in 2021 will be $ 15.00 in Washington, DC, beginning July 1, 2021.
- Paycor research found it 42% of organizations surveyed have negative feelings about their compliance management practices, in part due to limited resources and frequent changes to minimum wage laws, paid layoffs, and wage equity laws. .
Dive Insight:
The federal minimum wage for non-exempt workers remains at $ 7.25 per hour, but if a state or local law requires a higher amount, workers will have to be paid at that higher rate.
It is important for employers to keep abreast of changes in minimum wage laws, as well as other issues on wages and hours. Non-compliance can be costly: employers pay a record $ 322 million fiscal year 2020 to resolve wage and hourly claims filed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wages and Hours (WHD) Division.
WHD provides several online compliance resources for employers. It also launched a voluntary payroll independent determination (PAID) program, which allows employers to proactively investigate and correct overtime and minimum wage violations. Experts disagree on whether it’s a good idea for employers to get involved, but the program is gaining strength. To date, more than six dozen employers have paid more than $ 4 million in back wages to nearly 7,500 workers through the PAID program.
Employers ’best defense against wage and hourly claims remains a good offense. Overtime errors, incorrect grading, and automatic deduction policies are common points of problems. Employers can stay off the WHD radar by keeping up to date with applicable federal, state, and local laws and training front-line executives on comprehensive timing policies and practices.