Federal Real ID Laws in Minnesota
Minnesota is one of the last states out of compliance with the Federal Real ID Law which sets minimum security standards for state issued driver’s licenses and identification cards. The deadline to come into compliance is early 2018. If Minnesota fails to come into compliance, Minnesotans risk losing access to commercial aircrafts and to federal and military facilities. While there are issues of privacy, the primary issue in the legislature appears to be the requirement to prove citizenship. Republicans generally oppose providing driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants. Democrats argue having to prove citizenship would prevent undocumented immigrants from getting even... Read More
Nationwide Injunction Stops Implementation of New Overtime Rule
Earlier this year the Department of Labor issued a rule that would automatically extend overtime pay eligibility to salaried workers earning less than $913 per week or $47,476 per year, regardless of the workers’ job duties. The new rule regarding eligibility for overtime pay was to go into effect on December 1, 2016. On November 22, 2016, a United States District Court judge in Texas issued a temporary injunction prohibiting the new rule from going into effect. The injunction applies nationwide. It is not known if the ruling will be appealed. Even if it is appealed a decision on the... Read More
New Federal Overtime Rule is Fast Approaching
A new federal overtime rule goes into effect on December 1, 2016. The rule raises the Fair Labor Standards Act salary threshold for those white-collar employees who are exempt from overtime from $455/week ($23,660) to $913/week ($47,476.00). This means that an employee who makes less than $47,476.00 per year must be paid overtime. There are plenty of options to ensure compliance with this new rule. For example, an employer can (1) raise the employee’s salary to the threshold to keep from paying overtime; (2) keep the employee’s salary the same but limit the employee’s hours to 40 hours per week;... Read More