Are you prepared for the DOL’s proposed modifications? Do you even know what they are?

By Pam McDonald

At 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 14th Diane Marie O’Malley, Labor and Employment Practice Partner with the law firm of Hanson Bridgett LLP, will present 50 Trending Legal Tips in 50 Minutes.

She is a featured speaker at SHINE, the Senior Care HR Innovation Networks Engagement Summit (SeniorCareHRsummits.com) slated for October 13-15 at the Hilton Chicago-Indian Lakes Resort near Chicago, Illinois.

DOL Modifications and FLSA Changes

During her presentation, Ms. O’Malley will focus on a variety of recent and pending changes in the legal labor arena. She will spend time on the significant changes the Department of Labor (DOL) is proposing to the wage and hour regulations of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

DOL’s proposed modifications would greatly expand the number of employees eligible for time-and-a-half overtime payments when they work in excess of 40 hours in a single workweek and over eight hours in a day for employees working in California. There are many who feel this ruling will have a cascade affect in the coming years and could have a huge impact across senior care should any of it’s rules take effect, including new overtime rules, exemption status, a change in yearly earning caps and EAP “duties tests.” 

According to the Department of Labor, the proposed changes would double the minimum threshold income to $970 per week or $50,440 per year. As a result, it could expand the number of workers eligible for overtime from about 8 percent of salaried workers to about 40 percent – covering an additional 5 million workers.

Legal Concerns

In addition to discussing changes to the overtime rules, Ms. O’Malley’s presentation at SHINE will touch on:

  1. the latest legal developments in senior care employment, and how they could affect senior living and long-term care organizations
  2. forward-thinking business strategies for addressing and adapting to legal challenges within the senior care industry, and
  3. legal pointers on class actions, wage and hour compliance, gender bias, and social media use by employees.

An attorney with Hanson Bridgett since 1989, Ms. O’Malley represents employers primarily in health care and public transit. She counsels private and public sector employers regarding every aspect of the employment relationship including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, contract and wage-and-hour claims, and class actions.

Senior Care HR Summit

SHINE is one of several educational events created and produced annually by Senior Care Summits, and is the only conference focused exclusively on chief “people” strategists across the continuum of senior living and care.

The 2-1/2 day program offers leading-edge information and actionable tactics on a variety of forward-leaning topics and thought-provoking themes of particular interest to those responsible for talent development and human resources management. There are also ample opportunities for powerful networking with colleagues.

The conference will be held at the Hilton Chicago-Indian Lakes Resort in Bloomingdale, Illinois, about 20 minutes from either Midway or O’Hare airports in Chicago. For more information, visit seniorcarehrsummits.com.