Insights

The U.S. Supreme Court recently held that a rig oil worker paid at a daily rate that amounted to $200,000 annually was entitled to overtime pay because he was not paid on a “salary basis” as required by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

A vast number of private businesses will face new requirements on how – and whether – they report their beneficial ownership interests to the U.S. government, effective at the start of 2024.  While the time for compliance starts in several months, the time to prepare is now.

Congress passed two laws related to pregnant workers and nursing mothers in December 2022. First, Congress passed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which requires employers with at least 15 employees provide “reasonable accommodations” to a worker’s limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, unless the accommodations will cause an “undue hardship” to the employer (significant difficulty or expense for the employer). The PWFA is effective June 27, 2023, and will be enforced by the EEOC, which will issue proposed regulations subject to public comment before becoming final.

On March 13, 2023, Illinois became only the third state to mandate paid time off for all workers in the state when it enacted the Paid Leave for All Workers Act. The act is effective January 1, 2024.

If you think that there is a lot of talk about new factory construction in the United States in recent months, you are correct. Ryan Beene, a writer for Bloomberg News, noted last year that some in financial circles had predicted that the “fever” among American executives to shorten supply chains and bring production back to the United States would be short-lived as the pandemic faded.  However, Beene, after reviewing earnings calls and conference presentations, found the trend to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. actually was accelerating.  In 2022, the construction of new manufacturing facilities rose 116%. That dwarfs the 10% gain on all other building projects combined reported by Dodge Construction Network.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division recently released an opinion letter finding that employees who qualify for leave under the FMLA may use FMLA leave to work reduced hours until they have exhausted their FMLA leave.