A federal court has entered a consent judgment resolving a US Department of Labor lawsuit filed after an investigation that a Pennsylvania home healthcare agency failed to pay 98 nurses overtime wages legally earned, including payment for ancillary work and work related travel-in violation of federal law.
The US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in Scranton has ordered Revolutionary Home Health Inc. to pay $66,000 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 98 registered nurses and licensed practical nurses. Revolutionary Home Health must also pay $8,000 in civil penalties the department assessed given the repeat nature of the violations and the employer’s reckless disregard of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
The Wage and Hour Division Department found the home health agency failed to do the following:
- Pay 98 registered nurses and licensed practical nurses required overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. Instead, the agency paid employees on a “per-unit” basis and set a dollar amount per patient, with a different dollar amount assigned to certain types of visits, regardless of how many hours these employees worked.
- Pay employees for time spent performing duties outside of patient visits, such as attending meetings, getting supplies at the employer’s office, completing reports, and traveling between clients and facilities.
- Include bonuses in the calculation when determining workers’ overtime rates. Excluding these amounts resulted in the employer paying overtime at rates lower than those required by law.
- Maintain accurate time records. The employer failed to record the number of hours employees worked on a weekly or daily basis. Records also excluded time spent attending meetings, getting supplies at the employer’s office, contacting patients outside of work hours, completing reports and traveling between clients and facilities.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting employees in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local governments. Covered nonexempt workers are entitled to a minimum wage of not less than $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009. Overtime pay at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate of pay is required after 40 hours of work in a workweek.
- FLSA Minimum Wage: The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009. Many states also have minimum wage laws. In cases where an employee is subject to both state and federal minimum wage laws, the employee is entitled to the higher minimum wage.
- FLSA Overtime: Covered nonexempt employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 per workweek (any fixed and regularly recurring period of 168 hours – seven consecutive 24-hour periods) at a rate not less than one and one-half times the regular rate of pay. There is no limit on the number of hours employees 16 years or older may work in any workweek. The FLSA does not require overtime pay for work on weekends, holidays, or regular days of rest, unless overtime is worked on such days.
- Hours Worked: Hours worked ordinarily include all the time during which an employee is required to be on the employer’s premises, on duty, or at a prescribed workplace.
- Recordkeeping: Employers must display an official poster outlining the requirements of the FLSA. Employers must also keep employee time and pay records.
- Child Labor: These provisions are designed to protect the educational opportunities of minors and prohibit their employment in jobs and under conditions detrimental to their health or well-being.
The US Department of Labor Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act Learning page can be accessed here.
Compliance Perspective
Issue
The Fair Labor Standards Act must be adhered to at all times within your facility. It is imperative that all employees who are responsible for determining rates of pay, deciding overtime pay eligibility, and performing recordkeeping of wages are well trained in the Fair Labor Standards Act. When employing minors within your facility, it is critical that all federal laws are adhered to for the working minor. Violations of the Act can result in fines and other penalties.
Discussion Points
- Review your policies and procedures on fair wages, overtime pay eligibility, and recordkeeping. Also review your policy and procedure for employing minors. Update your policies as needed.
- Train all staff who have responsibility for ensuring fair wages, overtime pay eligibility, and recordkeeping so that they are knowledgeable about your policy and procedures to ensure they comply with the requirements. Train all staff who have responsibility for supervising and scheduling minors about the requirements that must be met when you employ minors in your setting. Document that these trainings occurred, and file each signed document in the employee’s education file.
- Periodically audit to ensure that fair wages, overtime pay eligibility, and the recordkeeping of hours worked are accurate and being reported correctly. Also, when employing minors, ensure that all employment requirements and limitations on hours worked are followed.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TOPIC VIEW: GUIDELINES FOR REST AND MEAL PERIODS.
