Labor & Employment Law Update

The City of Chicago just issued new rules clarifying the Chicago Minimum Wage Ordinance with respect to the minimum wage for tipped employees, overtime calculations for tipped and non-tipped employees, and complaints against employers.

The Minimum Wage and Tip Credit for Tipped Employees

The Rules clarify that the minimum wage for tipped employees is $10.00 and that Section 1-24-030(a)(1) sets forth the minimum wage minus tip credit that tipped employees may be paid.

As of July 1, 2015, the minimum wage minus tip credit is $5.45, or the state minimum wage of $8.25, minus the state ...

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has announced that they are issuing a proposed rule to increase the minimum salary requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act for exempt employees. The final proposed rule will be issued in the Federal Register and will provide a comment period for the public.

The proposed rule sets forth guidance and requests comment on the following proposed changes:

1. Set the minimum salary level to qualify for the white collar exemptions at 40% of the national weekly earnings for full-time salaried employees ($921 per week or $47,892 ...

This Wednesday, July 1, 2015, Chicago’s Minimum Wage Ordinance (Chicago Municipal Code §1-24) goes into effect, increasing the minimum wage to $10.00 per hour for non-tipped employees and $5.45 for tipped employees.

IMPORTANT NOTICE REQUIREMENTS: All employers that maintain a business facility within the geographic boundaries of  Chicago AND/OR are subject to one or more of the license requirements in Title 4 of the Municipal Code of Chicago are covered by Chicago’s Minimum Wage Ordinance and MUST do the following starting July 1^st:

1. Post Chicago’s Minimum Wage Poster by ...

In a major decision announced earlier today, the Supreme Court upheld the tax credits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in states that have a federal health care exchange, affirming the 4^th Circuit’s ruling in King v. Burwell.  The Court’s ruling confirms the legality of tax credits for the purchase of individual health coverage in the 37 states that have a health care exchange run by, or in partnership with, the federal government – including Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Missouri.

At issue was the interpretation of language in Section 36B of the ACA ...

Erratic behavior, caused by an underlying medical condition, does not necessarily mean a free pass under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In March, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, in Walz v. Ameriprise Financial, Inc., upheld the termination of a bipolar employee, finding that the termination did not violate the ADA. Identifying and accommodating employees with overt physical disabilities is substantially easier than accommodating behavior that is disruptive and/or erratic and caused by mental illness. Because of the difficulty in addressing these types of ...