With the tri-state area having experienced its first major snowstorm of the winter, this is a good time to make sure your organization has a formal policy in place related to facility closure. Your policy should address how:
- Employees can find out if there is a facility closure or a late opening
- The day will be treated for employee pay purposes
In reviewing your existing policy or developing it for the first time, there are two aspects you should carefully take into account:
- The Fair Labor Standards Act — ensure you what the Act and related Wage & Hour interpretations enable you to do and what you cannot do
- Employee Relations — to what extent will your employees perceive your policy as fair and reasonable
Fair Labor Standards Act
Briefly stated, the Act provides that if the company closes for weather-related reasons the following applies:
- Exempt (commonly referred to as “salaried”) employees are required to be paid—without being charged against paid time off (PTO).
Nothing prohibits you from reminding exempt employees of the expectation that they are expected to work whatever hours are necessary to “get the job done”. - Non-exempt (commonly referred to as “hourly”) employees are not required to be paid.
So you have three basic options for non-exempt employees:
-
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- Mandate that the day be charged against Paid Time Off (PTO)
- Allow them the choice of using accrued PTO to cover the day or taking the day as unpaid
- Go beyond the Act & pay them without charging the time to PTO
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
This is trickier than FLSA compliance—unless your policy calls for option 3 above. That’s because the other two options result in your differentiating between your non-exempt and exempt employees.
- ·Most employers do in fact have different treatment of these two groups in some aspects of employment—some favorable for one group and some favorable for the other group. For example:
Non-exempt employees being paid time and ½ for hours in excess of 40 in a week whereas exempt employees typically receive no additional compensation
Exempt employees receiving favorable treatment in terms of hours flexibility or some benefit, such as in PTO or life insurance. - Nonetheless, differing treatment of pay for the two groups for a facility closure can create an employee relations issue for you to address.
If your organization needs help with this policy (or other policies) or employee relations matters, Trinity’s Team of Consultants can help you.
- For more information, e mail Trinity at info@TrinityHR.net or visit our website at www.TrinityHR.net.