While wage and hour law remains the subject of continuing decisions by the courts and the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), the following tips will help minimize your exposure to avoidable legal problems.

EXEMPT OR NON-EXEMPT?

Class-action lawsuits alleging that “non-exempt” employees have been misclassified as “exempt” (and have thereby been deprived of overtime pay) now rank among the most common and costly lawsuits in the employment area. Moreover, the large and highly publicized judgments in these cases have raised the awareness of this classification issue among all employees – including those who work for small and mid-size companies.

The classification of employees as exempt or non-exempt is a highly technical, fact-intensive exercise that requires case-by-case analysis. However, the following advice may provide a useful starting point.