DOL Issues New Wage And Hour Opinion Letters

On November 8, 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced that its Wage and Hour Division has issued four new opinion letters. An opinion letter is an official, written opinion by the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division on how a particular law applies in specific circumstances presented by the person or entity requesting the letter. The new opinion letters relate to the following topics:

• whether nonprofit, privately-owned volunteer fire departments are entitled to partial overtime exemptions under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA);
• whether a guaranteed weekly salary for a professional employee has a “reasonable relationship” between salary paid and actual earnings for purposes of determining whether the employee is paid a salary;
• whether a pool management company qualifies as an “amusement or recreational establishment” under the FLSA; and
• applying the FLSA’s definition of “tipped employees” in situations involving dual jobs and non-tip generating duties.

Employers can search for other opinion letters on specific topics by using this link. If you have questions about a specific opinion letter, please contact a KZA attorney.

KZA Employer Report articles are for general information only; they are not intended and should not be construed to be legal advice. Reading or replying to such articles does not establish an attorney-client relationship. In addition, because the subject matters and applicable laws discussed in Employer Report articles are often in a state of change and not always applicable to every type of business entity or organization, readers should consult with counsel before making decisions based on the same.