Justices decide a day-rate is not a salary

The basic rule is simple: If you earn an hourly wage and you work more than 40 hours in a week, you are probably entitled to “time and a half” overtime pay. But that widely known formula can give way to complexity, as it did in Helix Energy Solutions Group v. Hewitt, a case about whether plaintiff Michael Hewitt is owed overtime pay by his former employer. After parsing detailed regulatory language, a six-justice majority sided with Hewitt; the opinion, authored by Justice Elena Kagan, ultimately turns on the intuitive conclusion that someone who earns a day-rate is not paid on a “salary basis.” READ MORE

The big squeeze: Is pay compression costing you good people?

Over the past few volatile years, the war for talent has meant that companies will often prioritize hiring at any cost. While many have increased salaries for new hires, few gave corresponding increases to current employees—giving rise to a compensation issue called pay compression. Pay compression is what happens when there is little difference between the wages earned by a tenured employee and newcomer, or between a junior- and senior-level employee working within the same job family. If left unchecked, pay compression can lead to higher turnover, lower productivity and the erosion of employee morale and organizational trust. But as we move into an economic downturn, with a greater emphasis on capital efficiency and cost reduction, many companies are encountering a difficult challenge: How can we remediate pay compression problems without an ample budget to give out pay increases? READ MORE

The best way to close gender pay gaps is to find the source of unfair pay

Businesses can close gender pay gaps, reward high performance and improve their compensation strategy by identifying the true source of pay inequity and fairly allocating raises to the most underpaid women, according to new research.

The researchers have developed their approach in collaboration with dozens of businesses around the world ranging from 75 to 130,000 employees, supporting most firms in closing the gender pay gap either immediately or over the course of just a few years. READ MORE

Gen Z women entering the workforce have low pay expectations, showing little has changed since the boomer generation

Gen Z isn’t dodging the pitfalls of pay equity issues as they enter the workforce. 

Women, it seems, fall behind on compensation even before their first professional job, according to a new report from Handshake, a career app aimed at Gen Z. On average, those surveyed in the class of 2023 reported they consider $82,000 a high, achievable starting salary. READ MORE

Justices OK overtime pay for $200,000-a-year worker

The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that an energy company employee who earned more than $200,000 a year still qualified for overtime pay under a New Deal-era federal law meant to protect blue-collar workers.

By a 6-3 vote, the justices sided with Michael Hewitt, who was a “tool-pusher” supervising 12 to 14 workers on an offshore oil rig. Hewitt was paid a minimum of $963 for any day he worked as part of an unusual schedule on the oil rig. READ MORE

Executive Bonuses Require Plans for Nonstatutory Stock Options

It’s that time of year when many executives receive their bonuses and when tax advice is needed on the best way to cash in on those bonuses—especially stock options.

Stock options are a right to purchase stock at a specified price. There are two types of stock options: statutory stock options, commonly referred to as incentive stock options, and nonstatutory stock options, also called nonqualified stock options. READ MORE

Judge asks if Musk's $56 billion Tesla pay hangs on a legal 'kill shot'

A trial challenging Elon Musk's $56 billion pay at Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) may hang on whether a single material misleading disclosure to shareholders would void the compensation plan, which the judge hearing the dispute called "a kill shot."

At Tuesday's closing arguments in a Delaware court, a judge pressed lawyers representing Tesla directors and the investor challenging Musk's pay over whether the company's explosive growth outweighed misleading disclosures about the pay plan in 2018. READ MORE

Compensation Is Hitting Its Digital Transformation Moment

Compensation is experiencing its digital transformation moment.

What is the full value of my compensation? How was it determined, and by whom? Am I paid competitively in the market? With the 2022 merit and bonus season behind many of us, and a year of looming economic uncertainty ahead, more employees and companies across America are asking hard questions about compensation than ever before. READ MORE

Managing The Rising Cost Of Labor

Of the many challenges facing the restaurant industry today, the rising cost of labor is one of the most formidable. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, average hourly earnings in food and drinking establishments jumped from $15 in 2018 to $19.42 in 2022. Factors contributing to this trend include the ongoing labor shortage and recent increases in federal, state and local minimum wage requirements. In a recent survey by FSR magazine, restaurant operators were asked to name their most significant challenges. The top three answers were food costs (92%), labor costs (89%) and energy and utility costs (63%).

To address this challenge, restaurants should calculate and track their labor costs and consider strategies for controlling them. READ MORE

Employers Are Rebalancing Pay Strategies in a Precarious Economy

Today, Payscale Inc., the leading provider of compensation data, software and services, released the results of its flagship survey, the 2023 Compensation Best Practices Report (CBPR), shedding light on the ongoing power struggle between employees and employers. The largest report of its kind on compensation trends and total rewards, this year’s CBPR examines how employers can elevate their compensation management strategy to rebalance the employee experience in a precarious economy and the age of pay transparency. READ MORE