The Department of Labor (DOL) has proposed several changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), especially concerning exemptions, and the workers who may be entitled be considered exempt or not-exempt. Workers who are exempt generally do not collect overtime pay regardless of the number of hours worked, whereas non-exempt workers are entitled to overtime pay at a rate of one and one-half times their standard rate of pay for all time worked over 40 hours in any one work week.
In addition to the proposed changes which would make many more workers – including home health care works be considered non-exempt – recent case law has found that the only home health care workers who should be considered exempt are those who are employed directly by the person or the family of the person who they are caring for. This means that those workers who are hired by an agency or staffing company and placed in a home may be entitled to benefits provided by the FLSA such as overtime pay and guaranteed minimum wage.
For more information about the FLSA or if you have any wage and hour question, please contact the dedicatedAtlanta wage and hour lawyers at Buckley Bala Wilson Mew LLP for an immediate case evaluation.