Certain executive and administrative employees are exempt from being paid for overtime under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). One of the requirements is that the executive and administrative employee must be paid a minimum fixed salary. Effective December 1, 2016, the minimum salary requirement will be increased from $23,600 to $47,476. As an…
The flooring industry has long been viewed somewhat suspiciously by the buying public. Frankly, I believe this dubious viewpoint has been deserved. I served on the Northeast Kansas Better Business Bureau board of directors for many years and each year we were provided with a list of more than 200 business categories ranked by the…
In the 1990’s, my firm was among several dealers asked to monitor all installation related interactions that our firms had with customers. We not only tracked installations, but all correspondence that we had with our customers which may have lead to them being disappointed with the service experience that they received. There were both single…
“How are you doing?” We hear this question multiple times daily and likely respond with a “Fine, how are you?” This interaction happens so often that we don’t even wait to hear the response. It has become simply the polite thing to say. Now that may work fine in your personal life, where politeness is…
Leadership, at its core, is all about influence through relationships. I have often noted that the greatest leaders are not those who feel they have to do it all, but those who have the ability to create loyalty from a team who can do it all – a team made up of quality people with…
One of the greatest mistakes leaders make is focusing on their own performance over that of their people. There is no doubt that all leaders need to seek continual improvement, but in order to improve your business, self-improvement is not your best route. Instead, focus on improving those around you. Create an atmosphere that allows…
This is an election year, so it makes sense to evaluate leadership in the most visible platform we have available in 2016. Now before you think this is a political column, think again. There are, in various forms, leaders on both sides of the isle. Though there have been good leaders, and some may even…
Fourteen states have announced they will be raising their minimum wages the first of the year. Alaska: $8.75 to $9.75 Arkansas: $7.50 to $8.00 California: $9.00 to $10.00 Colorado: $8.23 to $8.31 Connecticut: $9.15 to $9.60 Hawaii: $7.75 to $8.50 Massachusetts: $9.00 to $10.00 Michigan: $8.15 to $8.50 Nebraska: $8.00 to $9.00 New York: $8.75 to $9.00 (effective New Year’s Eve) Rhode Island: $9.00 to $9.60…
We continue to see the independent contractor classification under attack. Recently, the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry issued a new policy making construction employers responsible to furnish upon demand proof that its subcontractor have the required licenses. The Virginia Occupational Safety and Health Compliance (VOSH) inspectors will enforce this new policy during periodic inspections….
What do you do with employment applications for candidates that you did not hire? Do you put them in a files or throw then out? The anti-discrimination laws may require you to keep for at least a year these applications, along with resumes, interview notes, drug screens, employment tests, reference checks, and background or credit…
True leadership is rarely about title, status, or income. Even more rare is the need for a true leader to identify him or herself. True leaders naturally develop key relationships and surround themselves with others who are smarter and wiser in their key areas of weakness. Because of this, the true leader is rarely the…
On July 15, 2015, the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor (DOL) issued what will be effectively a new standard of who qualifies as an independent contractor that will likely limit significantly the number of workers that meet the criteria. While claiming this was just an “interpretation” of the current standard and…