US DOL Record Wage Recoveries in 2007

It’s Probably Getting Worse Before It Gets Better

Posted on 10-Jan-08 by The Timekeeper

Frankly, this is not much of a surprise to anybody who’s been reading here for any length of time:

US DOL announces record wage recovery for fiscal year 2007

According to the press release, the DOL recovered $220,613,703 in back wages for 341,624 employees.

And all the predictions I’m seeing say that wage and hour issues are going to be an even bigger problem for employers in 2008 than they were in 2007. If you have employees, that’s gotta be at least a little bit scary.

You say you’re not worried? Consider all the areas where one wage and hour mistake can end up costing you thousands in legal fees, not to mention back wages and penalties.

Unintentional, but common, problems include misclassification of employees and poor recordkeeping. Either of these can land you in hot water — and it only gets worse if the plaintiff’s lawyer convinces the court the violation was “willful.”

So, are you prepared to stand up in court and vouch for your time and attendance tracking and your payroll system? When was the last time you had a wage and hour audit? And do you have a reliable and accurate time and attendance tracking system in place?

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