Can I hold an employee’s paycheck?
Almost every employer has faced the following situation: an employee quits without notice, and still possesses property (uniforms, equipment, keys) that belong to the company. Or worse, the employee is disgruntled and damages property of the company on her way out. It’s alright, I’ll just hold her last paycheck hostage until she returns the […]
Do I need to provide leave to my employees?
First of all, when we say “leave” we are referring to leave as a general term of not being required to be at work. So, leave is an umbrella term that refers to vacation time, sick time, personal time, PTO and whatever other creative term may be used to refer to time away from […]
The Wage and Hour Implications of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
In early November, 2021, President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a bipartisan infrastructure deal. The bill allocates approximately $1.2 trillion for infrastructure spending, including $55 billion to expand access to clean drinking water, $110 billion for roads and bridges, $66 billion for railroads, $65 billion each for power grid updates […]
The Supreme Court Issues Opinions On Two Vaccination Mandates: What Employers Need To Know
On January 13, The Supreme Court of the United States issued two important decisions pertaining to vaccinations in the workplace. In one ruling, the Supreme Court struck down the Biden Administration’s OSHA rule requiring employers of 100 or more individuals to implement a policy requiring their employees to either get vaccinated against COVID-19 or show […]
Can my minor child work at my business?
This KEW Tip was originally published in the Spring of 2017, and has been updated as of August 2021 due to changes in the law. Mixing Bowl Drama On April 25, 2017, the Mixing Bowl Bakery, in Sauk City, Wisconsin was under fire for accusations of violations of child labor laws. The bakery was […]
U.S. Department of Labor Proposes Further Rulemaking for Tip Regulations
The U.S. Department of Labor recently proposed further rulemaking for tip regulations, which delayed some regulations until December 2021, while others took effect on April 30, 2021. The FLSA allows an employer to count a limited amount of tips received by its tipped employees as a credit toward the employer’s Federal minimum wage obligations. This […]
Do business owners need to pay Unemployment Insurance?
Let’s start with some background on unemployment insurance in Wisconsin. This article focuses on unemployment insurance from an employer’s perspective and specifically under Wisconsin state law. As such, we are not discussing the expanded unemployment provisions in the CARES Act, which primarily impact separated employees applying for unemployment benefits under more broad eligibility criteria. As […]
Employee or Independent Contractor?
Whether an individual worker can or should be classified as an employee or independent contractor is a crucial question that every employer needs to answer before bringing on a worker. This article is focused on issues facing Wisconsin employers. This article is broken down into two sections: FAQs Tests which include both Wisconsin and Federal […]
American Rescue Plan Act – Biden’s $1.9 Trillion Stimulus
President Biden signed a massive piece of COVID-19 relief legislation on Thursday, March 11, with benefits totaling approximately $1.9 trillion dollars. The bill, named the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), provides the well-publicized $1,400 for many Americans. The bill also continues expanded unemployment benefits and an expansion of the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), while providing […]
New COVID guidance from OSHA
On January 29, 2021 OSHA released guidance to help employers and employees identify risks related to exposure to and contracting of COVID-19 at work. This guidance is intended to apply to most workplace settings, but specifically does not apply to healthcare or emergency response settings/workplaces. The guidance contains recommendations that are advisory in nature and […]