The Fair Labor Stan­dards Act (FLSA) is one of the most impor­tant fed­er­al employ­ment laws, but it’s also one of the most mis­un­der­stood. Cov­er­ing every­thing from min­i­mum wage to over­time pay, the FLSA estab­lish­es the base­line rules for how employ­ees must be com­pen­sat­ed. Whether you’re an employ­er try­ing to stay com­pli­ant or an employ­ee won­der­ing if you’re being paid fair­ly, under­stand­ing the FLSA is essential.

What Does the FLSA Cover?

The FLSA, enact­ed in 1938, estab­lish­es min­i­mum wage, over­time pay, record­keep­ing, and child labor stan­dards (29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq.). While states can impose more gen­er­ous pro­tec­tions, the FLSA sets the floor for wage and hour laws across the country.

Key pro­vi­sions include:

• Min­i­mum Wage: The fed­er­al min­i­mum wage is cur­rent­ly $7.25 per hour (29 U.S.C. § 206(a)). How­ev­er, states can impose high­er min­i­mum wages, and employ­ers must pay the high­er rate if applic­a­ble. West Virginia’s min­i­mum wage is $8.75 per hour (W. Va. Code § 21–5C‑2).
• Over­time Pay: Non-exempt employ­ees must receive over­time pay at 1.5 times their reg­u­lar hourly rate for any hours worked over 40 in a work­week (29 U.S.C. § 207(a)).
• Child Labor Pro­tec­tions: The FLSA restricts the hours and types of work minors can per­form, with stricter rules for haz­ardous occu­pa­tions (29 U.S.C. § 212).

Who Is Covered by the FLSA?

The FLSA applies to most pri­vate employ­ers and gov­ern­ment agen­cies engaged in inter­state com­merce. Employ­ees can be cov­ered either through:

• Enter­prise Cov­er­age: If an employ­er has at least two employ­ees and at least $500,000 in annu­al rev­enue, the entire work­force is covered.
• Indi­vid­ual Cov­er­age: Employ­ees who reg­u­lar­ly engage in inter­state com­merce, such as han­dling out-of-state ship­ments or mak­ing inter­state phone calls, are covered.

Employees who are exempt from certain protections of the FLSA

Some employ­ees are clas­si­fied as exempt from FLSA pro­tec­tions, which means they are not enti­tled to over­time pay. Com­mon exemp­tions include:

• Exec­u­tive, Admin­is­tra­tive, and Pro­fes­sion­al Employ­ees: These employ­ees must earn at least $684 per week and pri­mar­i­ly per­form job duties requir­ing dis­cre­tion and inde­pen­dent judg­ment (29 C.F.R. § 541.100 et seq.).
• Out­side Sales Employ­ees: Employ­ees whose pri­ma­ry job is mak­ing sales away from the employer’s place of busi­ness are gen­er­al­ly exempt (29 C.F.R. § 541.500).

Common FLSA Violations

Employ­ers often run afoul of the FLSA, some­times unin­ten­tion­al­ly. Com­mon vio­la­tions include:

• Mis­clas­si­fy­ing Employ­ees: Employ­ers may mis­tak­en­ly (or delib­er­ate­ly) clas­si­fy non-exempt employ­ees as exempt to avoid pay­ing overtime.
• Unpaid Over­time: Some employ­ers fail to cal­cu­late over­time cor­rect­ly, espe­cial­ly for employ­ees work­ing off the clock or through meal breaks.
• Tip Cred­it Vio­la­tions: The FLSA allows employ­ers to pay tipped employ­ees a low­er hourly wage ($2.13 per hour fed­er­al­ly) as long as tips bring them up to min­i­mum wage (29 U.S.C. § 203(m)). How­ev­er, improp­er tip pool­ing and wage deduc­tions can result in violations.

West Virginia-Specific Considerations

West Vir­ginia has its own wage and hour laws, which pro­vide addi­tion­al pro­tec­tions in some cas­es. Key pro­vi­sions include:

• The state min­i­mum wage of $8.75 per hour, which applies to employ­ers with six or more employ­ees (W. Va. Code § 21–5C‑2).
• Over­time pro­tec­tions mir­ror­ing fed­er­al law, requir­ing time-and-a-half pay for hours worked over 40 per week (W. Va. Code § 21–5C‑3).
• Addi­tion­al wage pay­ment pro­tec­tions under the West Vir­ginia Wage Pay­ment and Col­lec­tion Act (W. Va. Code § 21–5‑4).

Best Practices for Employers

To avoid FLSA vio­la­tions, employ­ers should:

• Review Employ­ee Clas­si­fi­ca­tions: Ensure that exempt and non-exempt des­ig­na­tions com­ply with the law.
• Track Hours Accu­rate­ly: Use reli­able time­keep­ing sys­tems to record hours worked.
• Train Man­agers on Wage Laws: Super­vi­sors should under­stand over­time rules and ensure employ­ees take required meal and rest breaks.

What Employees Should Do

If you believe your employ­er is vio­lat­ing wage and hour laws:

• Keep Detailed Records: Track your hours worked and pay received.
• Dis­cuss Con­cerns with Your Employ­er: Some vio­la­tions result from mis­un­der­stand­ings that can be resolved internally.
• File a Com­plaint: Employ­ees can report wage vio­la­tions to the U.S. Depart­ment of Labor’s Wage and Hour Divi­sion or seek legal counsel.

Conclusion

The FLSA is a crit­i­cal law that pro­tects work­ers’ wages and ensures fair pay prac­tices. Employ­ers must stay com­pli­ant, and employ­ees should be aware of their rights. Under­stand­ing the basics of wage and hour laws can help both sides nav­i­gate work­place pay issues and avoid legal disputes.

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Drew M. Capuder

Attorney at Capuder Fantasia PLLC

Publisher of Drew Capuder's Employment Law Blog. Lawyer with more than 30 years of experience, focusing on employment law, commercial litigation, and mediation. Extensive trial and appellate experience in state and federal courts. Call Drew at 304-333-5261.

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