It’s time again for our HR Basecamp roundup. If you’re new here, we take the most popular submitted questions from our HR Basecamp Facebook group every other week and go more in-depth on the answer. Join the over 10,000 other office managers and business owners here to submit your questions and participate in the discussion!
Podcasts and Resources in the Roundup:
Do I have to pay an employee if they show up for their shift but are sent home because of lack of work? Sometimes they’re sent home as soon as they get here.
The legal side of things: It all depends on where you’re located. While most states don’t have reporting pay requirements, there are a handful that do. If you’re in one of those states, you’re responsible for compensating employees when they’re sent home due to lack of work. That’s a critical detail! Reporting pay is meant to cover instances where the employee is ready and able to work, but the business does not have work for them. You are not responsible for paying employees if they choose to leave voluntarily. There are also exceptions in situations where the lack of work is out of the employer’s control, such as natural disasters.
But don’t worry—even if reporting pay applies, this doesn’t mean you have to pay the employee for the whole day. Each state’s rules regarding the minimum pay required are a little different, so you should always double-check what your local law says (and contact the Solution Center if you’re unsure).
Now for the human approach: Laws aside, there’s some debate amongst employers about whether you should (at least partially) compensate an employee for reporting to work even if there’s no legal requirement. After all, this person has already spent time getting ready and commuting to the office, and they’re expecting to work a full day to make money to support themselves. But we know that’s not always realistic. So what can you do instead?
For starters, taking some proactive steps to confirm scheduling can prevent the issue from happening. Double-checking employee schedules and confirming appointments can help you determine whether you need a full staff ahead of time so you can let the employees know in advance that they don’t need to come in.
Also, be sure to have a plan in place so that you and your manager can contact everyone on your team ahead of time if the office needs to close or reduce staffing due to weather issues. The last thing your employees want to hear after shoveling the snow off their driveway and carefully driving on icy streets is that they didn’t need to bother coming in at all, and they’re also losing out on a day of pay.
If it can’t be prevented, it can be helpful to have “backup” tasks for employees to do. Admin work, instrument cleaning, etc. are all good options so that the employee can get as many hours in as possible.
Podcasts and Resources in the Roundup:
Do I have to pay an employee if they show up for their shift but are sent home because of lack of work? Sometimes they’re sent home as soon as they get here.
The legal side of things: It all depends on where you’re located. While most states don’t have reporting pay requirements, there are a handful that do. If you’re in one of those states, you’re responsible for compensating employees when they’re sent home due to lack of work. That’s a critical detail! Reporting pay is meant to cover instances where the employee is ready and able to work, but the business does not have work for them. You are not responsible for paying employees if they choose to leave voluntarily. There are also exceptions in situations where the lack of work is out of the employer’s control, such as natural disasters.
But don’t worry—even if reporting pay applies, this doesn’t mean you have to pay the employee for the whole day. Each state’s rules regarding the minimum pay required are a little different, so you should always double-check what your local law says (and contact the Solution Center if you’re unsure).
Now for the human approach: Laws aside, there’s some debate amongst employers about whether you should (at least partially) compensate an employee for reporting to work even if there’s no legal requirement. After all, this person has already spent time getting ready and commuting to the office, and they’re expecting to work a full day to make money to support themselves. But we know that’s not always realistic. So what can you do instead?
For starters, taking some proactive steps to confirm scheduling can prevent the issue from happening. Double-checking employee schedules and confirming appointments can help you determine whether you need a full staff ahead of time so you can let the employees know in advance that they don’t need to come in.
Also, be sure to have a plan in place so that you and your manager can contact everyone on your team ahead of time if the office needs to close or reduce staffing due to weather issues. The last thing your employees want to hear after shoveling the snow off their driveway and carefully driving on icy streets is that they didn’t need to bother coming in at all, and they’re also losing out on a day of pay.
If it can’t be prevented, it can be helpful to have “backup” tasks for employees to do. Admin work, instrument cleaning, etc. are all good options so that the employee can get as many hours in as possible.
What is the best way to address employees who are gossiping and creating a toxic office environment?
The legal side of things: Tread lightly here! What you see as gossiping might very well be considered protected activity under the National Labor Relations Act.
We’ve seen some version of this question come through the Solution Center many, many times, only to get more information about the situation and find out that the employee's “gossip” or “toxic behavior” was legally protected, i.e., the employee was talking to other staff about their salary or complaining about how their team lead wants them to do things.
The NLRA says that employers cannot create a policy or enforce rules, written or not, which would even remotely imply that employees may not gather or discuss their wages, benefits, and working conditions. And they’re strict about it! Some employers try to get around the law by making casual requests not to discuss these topics rather than having a formal policy or making a general statement about how these discussions can cause tension in the workplace and are best avoided. We’ll tell you now - that won’t fly. You can read more about the NLRA’s rules here.
Now for the human approach: We don’t know the specifics of what “gossip” is creating drama in your office, but let’s say it’s protected under the NLRA. You shouldn’t take any adverse action against the employee(s) for discussing these topics, but that doesn’t mean you can’t address it in a proactive way.
Acknowledge what they’ve been discussing (pay, hours, etc.), and that you understand there may be some concerns. Invite them to speak with management. The office generally has a reason for the standards that are in place and you can help provide clarity as well as goals for the individual employee.
Obviously, not all employee communication is protected. The toxic work environment could be stemming from some good old-fashioned rumors. Depending on the rumor, the best course of action can range from a simple conversation with the offending employee(s) to a full-on investigation.
This is the kind of topic you really want an HR expert to help out with. They’ll ask you to identify who, what, when, and how of the toxicity and give you a strategy to manage employee complaints.
The legal side of things: Tread lightly here! What you see as gossiping might very well be considered protected activity under the National Labor Relations Act.
We’ve seen some version of this question come through the Solution Center many, many times, only to get more information about the situation and find out that the employee's “gossip” or “toxic behavior” was legally protected, i.e., the employee was talking to other staff about their salary or complaining about how their team lead wants them to do things.
The NLRA says that employers cannot create a policy or enforce rules, written or not, which would even remotely imply that employees may not gather or discuss their wages, benefits, and working conditions. And they’re strict about it! Some employers try to get around the law by making casual requests not to discuss these topics rather than having a formal policy or making a general statement about how these discussions can cause tension in the workplace and are best avoided. We’ll tell you now - that won’t fly. You can read more about the NLRA’s rules here.
Now for the human approach: We don’t know the specifics of what “gossip” is creating drama in your office, but let’s say it’s protected under the NLRA. You shouldn’t take any adverse action against the employee(s) for discussing these topics, but that doesn’t mean you can’t address it in a proactive way.
Acknowledge what they’ve been discussing (pay, hours, etc.), and that you understand there may be some concerns. Invite them to speak with management. The office generally has a reason for the standards that are in place and you can help provide clarity as well as goals for the individual employee.
Obviously, not all employee communication is protected. The toxic work environment could be stemming from some good old-fashioned rumors. Depending on the rumor, the best course of action can range from a simple conversation with the offending employee(s) to a full-on investigation.
This is the kind of topic you really want an HR expert to help out with. They’ll ask you to identify who, what, when, and how of the toxicity and give you a strategy to manage employee complaints.
I saw the news about new exempt salary requirements. Does this mean I have to give all my exempt employees a raise?
The legal side of things: For those who aren’t familiar, the Department of Labor recently announced a final rule that increases the minimum required salary for exempt employees from $35,568 to $43,888 on July 1, 2024, then to $58,656 on January 1, 2025. Obviously, this is a significant increase. We do want to note that this ruling has already been challenged, and it’s entirely possible that it will be overturned or amended before the final increase goes into effect.
Salary is non-negotiable when it comes to exempt classification (unless the employee is a doctor, in which case some alternative pay methods like a percentage of collections are permitted). This means that if you want your exempt employees to stay exempt, then yes, you’ll need to increase their pay. If you don’t, they’ll be misclassified in the eyes of the DOL. One audit and you could be on the hook for thousands of dollars. Check out this episode of What the Hell Just Happened?! for more on what can happen if you classify employees incorrectly.
Now for the human approach: But what if you can’t afford to give your exempt employees a raise? The other option is to change their classification to non-exempt. You can continue to pay them a salary (you don’t need to switch to hourly), but they will need to start tracking their hours and will be eligible for overtime. If you have an exempt employee who tends to work more than 40 hours a week (or over 8 hours a day, depending on where you’re located), you should weigh the costs of likely overtime against the difference in salary if you give them a raise.
It’s possible that changing an employee’s classification will be met with backlash. We recommend having a private conversation with each employee this affects and coming prepared with an explanation of why the change is being made so they understand this isn’t a random decision you made.
CEDR members - reach out to the Solution Center for guidance before changing an employee’s status. They can provide you with the necessary paperwork and help you with what language to use when notifying your employees of the change.
Extra credit reading: The CEDR Guide to Employee Classification and Wage Compliance
The legal side of things: For those who aren’t familiar, the Department of Labor recently announced a final rule that increases the minimum required salary for exempt employees from $35,568 to $43,888 on July 1, 2024, then to $58,656 on January 1, 2025. Obviously, this is a significant increase. We do want to note that this ruling has already been challenged, and it’s entirely possible that it will be overturned or amended before the final increase goes into effect.
Salary is non-negotiable when it comes to exempt classification (unless the employee is a doctor, in which case some alternative pay methods like a percentage of collections are permitted). This means that if you want your exempt employees to stay exempt, then yes, you’ll need to increase their pay. If you don’t, they’ll be misclassified in the eyes of the DOL. One audit and you could be on the hook for thousands of dollars. Check out this episode of What the Hell Just Happened?! for more on what can happen if you classify employees incorrectly.
Now for the human approach: But what if you can’t afford to give your exempt employees a raise? The other option is to change their classification to non-exempt. You can continue to pay them a salary (you don’t need to switch to hourly), but they will need to start tracking their hours and will be eligible for overtime. If you have an exempt employee who tends to work more than 40 hours a week (or over 8 hours a day, depending on where you’re located), you should weigh the costs of likely overtime against the difference in salary if you give them a raise.
It’s possible that changing an employee’s classification will be met with backlash. We recommend having a private conversation with each employee this affects and coming prepared with an explanation of why the change is being made so they understand this isn’t a random decision you made.
CEDR members - reach out to the Solution Center for guidance before changing an employee’s status. They can provide you with the necessary paperwork and help you with what language to use when notifying your employees of the change.
Extra credit reading: The CEDR Guide to Employee Classification and Wage Compliance
