Compensating minors?]

[lars hasselblad torres]

kallen, hi -- i'm in a situation similar to yours: in developing mediapor=
t we
decided that it would assist attendance/enrollment/professionalism by
providing all our kids with stipends for up to 100 hours of computer lear=
ning.
  part of the rationale is that these kids would also be providing some b=
asic
services to the community in the form of web-page design, desktop publish=
ing,
etc.

that said, i know absolutely nothing about legal issues.  14 is the cut-o=
ff
age for 'nonagricultural' types of employment, but there are certain
exemptions to that rule.  attached i have pasted relevant excerpts from t=
he
department of labor's 'handy reference guide.' you can read through their=

tandards and guidelines in detail at www.dol.gov.

please let me know what direction you take, as i'm very curious (i've fou=
nd
here that cash rules for long term motivation).

best,

lars hasselblad torres
mediaport/dc
202-903-6006

******************************************************
******************************************************

Employment Standards Administration
               Wage and Hour Division =

               Handy Reference Guide =

<p>                                             =

<p>Handy Reference Guide to the Fair Labor Standards Act

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes minimum wage, overtime pa=
y,
recordkeeping, and child labor standards affecting full-time and part-tim=
e
workers in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local government=
s.

<p>Subminimum Wage Provisions

The FLSA provides for the employment of certain individuals at wage rates=

below the statutory minimum. Such individuals include student-learners
(vocational education students), as well as full-time students in retail =
or
service establishments, agriculture, or institutions of higher education.=
 Also
included are individuals whose earning or productive capacity is impaired=
 by a
physical or mental disability, including those related to age or injury, =
for
the work to be performed. Employment at
less than the minimum wage is authorized to prevent curtailment of
opportunities for employment. Such employment is permitted only under
certificates issued by Wage-Hour.

Youth Minimum Wage

A minimum wage of not less than $4.25 an hour is permitted for employees =
under
20 years of age during their first 90 consecutive calendar days of employ=
ment
with an employer. Employers are prohibited from taking any action to disp=
lace
employees in order to hire employees at the youth minimum wage. Also
prohibited are partial displacements such as reducing employees' hours, w=
ages,
or employment benefits.

Exemptions

Some employees are exempt from the overtime pay provisions or both the mi=
nimum
wage and overtime pay provisions.

Because exemptions are generally narrowly defined under FLSA, an employer=

hould carefully check the exact terms and conditions for each. Detailed
information is available from local Wage-Hour offices.

Following are examples of exemptions which are illustrative, but not
all-inclusive. These examples do not define the conditions for each
exemption.

Exemptions from Both Minimum Wage and Overtime Pay

(1) Executive, administrative, and professional employees (including teac=
hers
and academic administrative personnel in elementary and secondary schools=
),
outside sales employees, and employees in certain computer-related occupa=
tions
(as defined in Department of Labor regulations);

(2) Employees of certain seasonal amusement or recreational establishment=
s,
employees of certain small newspapers, seamen employed on foreign vessels=
,
employees engaged in fishing operations, and employees engaged in newspap=
er
delivery;

(3) Farm workers employed by anyone who used no more than 500 "man-days" =
of
farm labor in any calendar quarter of the preceding calendar year;

(4) Casual babysitters and persons employed as companions to the elderly =
or
infirm.

Exemptions from Overtime Pay Only

(1) Certain commissioned employees of retail or service establishments; a=
uto,
truck, trailer, farm implement, boat, or aircraft salesworkers, or
parts-clerks and mechanics servicing autos, trucks, or farm implements, w=
ho
are employed by nonmanufacturing establishments primarily engaged in sell=
ing
these items to ultimate
purchasers;

(2) Employees of railroads and air carriers, taxi drivers, certain employ=
ees
of motor carriers, seamen on American vessels, and local delivery employe=
es
paid on
approved trip rate plans;

(3) Announcers, news editors, and chief engineers of certain nonmetropoli=
tan
broadcasting stations;

(4) Domestic service workers living in the employer's residence;

(5) Employees of motion picture theaters; and

(6) Farmworkers.

Partial Exemptions from Overtime Pay

(1) Partial overtime pay exemptions apply to employees engaged in certain=

operations on agricultural commodities and to employees of certain bulk
petroleum distributors.

(2) Hospitals and residential care establishments may adopt, by agreement=
 with
their employees, a 14-day work period instead of the usual 7-day workweek=
, if
the employees are paid at least time and one-half their regular rates for=

hours worked over 8 in a day or 80 in a 14-day work period, whichever is =
the
greater number of
overtime hours.

(3) Employees who lack a high school diploma, or who have not attained th=
e
educational level of the 8th grade, can be required to spend up to 10 hou=
rs in
a workweek engaged in remedial reading or training in other basic skills
without receiving time and one-half overtime pay for these hours. However=
, the
employees must receive their normal wages for hours spent in such trainin=
g and
the training must not be job specific.

Child Labor Provisions

The FLSA child labor provisions are designed to protect the educational
opportunities of minors and prohibit their employment in jobs and under
conditions detrimental to their health or well-being. The provisions incl=
ude
restrictions on hours of work for minors under 16 and lists of hazardous
occupations orders for both farm and nonfarm jobs declared by the Secreta=
ry of
Labor to be too dangerous for minors to perform. Further information on
prohibited occupations is available
from local Wage-Hour offices.

Nonagricultural Jobs (Child Labor)

Regulations governing youth employment in nonfarm jobs differ somewhat fr=
om
those pertaining to agricultural employment. In nonfarm work, the permiss=
ible
jobs and hours of work, by age, are as follows:

(1) Youths 18 years or older may perform any job, whether hazardous or no=
t,
for unlimited hours;

(2) Youths 16 and 17 years old may perform any nonhazardous job, for unli=
mited
hours; and

(3) Youths 14 and 15 years old may work outside school hours in various
nonmanufacturing, nonmining, nonhazardous jobs under the following condit=
ions:
no more than 3 hours on a school day, 18 hours in a school week, 8 hours =
on a
nonschool day, or 40 hours in a nonschool week. Also, work may not begin
before 7 a.m.,nor end after 7 p.m., except from June 1 through Labor Day,=
 when
evening hours are extended to 9 p.m. Under a special provision, youths 14=
 and
15 years old enrolled in an approved Work Experience and Career Explorati=
on
Program (WECEP) may be employed for up to 23 hours in school weeks and 3 =
hours
on school days (including during school hours).

Fourteen is the minimum age for most nonfarm work. However, at any age, y=
ouths
may deliver newspapers; perform in radio, television, movie, or theatrica=
l
productions; work for parents in their solely-owned nonfarm business (exc=
ept
in manufacturing or on hazardous jobs); or, gather evergreens and make
evergreen wreaths.

<p>Terms Used in FLSA

Workweek -- A workweek is a period of 168 hours during 7 consecutive 24-h=
our
periods. It may begin on any day of the week and at any hour of the day
established by the employer. Generally, for purposes of minimum wage and
overtime payment each workweek stands alone; there can be no averaging of=
 2 or
more workweeks. Employee coverage, compliance with wage payment requireme=
nts,
and the application of most exemptions are determined on a workweek basis=
=2E

Hours Worked -- Covered employees must be paid for all hours worked in a
workweek. In general, "hours worked" includes all time an employee must b=
e on
duty, or on the employer's premises or at any other prescribed place of w=
ork.
Also included is any additional time the employee is allowed (i.e., suffe=
red
or permitted) to work.

Computing Overtime Pay

Overtime must be paid at a rate of at least one and one-half times the
employee's regular rate of pay for each hour worked in a workweek in exce=
ss of
the maximum allowable in a given type of employment. Generally, the regul=
ar
rate includes all payments made by the employer to or on behalf of the
employee (except for certain statutory exclusions). The following example=
s are
based on a maximum 40-hour workweek.

(1) Hourly rate -- (regular pay rate for an employee paid by the hour). I=
f
more than 40 hours are worked, at least one and one-half times the regula=
r
rate for each hour over 40 is due.

Example: An employee paid $8.00 an hour works 44 hours in a workweek. The=

employee is entitled to at least one and one-half times $8.00, or $12.00,=
 for
each hour over 40. Pay for the week would be $320 for the first 40 hours,=
 plus
$48.00 for the four hours of overtime--a total of $368.00.

(2) Piece rate -- The regular rate of pay for an employee paid on a piece=
work
basis is obtained by dividing the total weekly earnings by the total numb=
er of
hours worked in that week. The employee is entitled to an additional one-=
half
times this regular rate for each hour over 40, plus the full piecework
earnings.

Example: An employee paid on a piecework basis works 45 hours in a week a=
nd
earns $315. The regular rate of pay for that week is $315 divided by 45, =
or
$7.00 an hour. In addition to the straight-time pay, the employee is also=

entitled to $3.50 (half the regular rate) for each hour over 40 -- an
additional $17.50 for the 5 overtime hours -- for a total of $332.50.

Another way to compensate pieceworkers for overtime, if agreed to before =
the
work is performed, is to pay one and one-half times the piece rate for ea=
ch
piece produced during the overtime hours.

The piece rate must be the one actually paid during nonovertime hours and=
 must
be enough to yield at least the minimum wage per hour.

(3) Salary -- the regular rate for an employee paid a salary for a regula=
r or
specified number of hours a week is obtained by dividing the salary by th=
e
number of hours for which the salary is intended to compensate.

If, under the employment agreement, a salary sufficient to meet the minim=
um
wage requirement in every workweek is paid as straight time for whatever
number of hours are worked in a workweek, the regular rate is obtained by=

dividing the salary by the number of hours worked each week. To illustrat=
e,
suppose an employee's hours of work vary each week and the agreement with=
 the
employer is that the employee will be paid $420 a week for whatever numbe=
r of
hours of work are required. Under this agreement, the regular rate will v=
ary
in overtime weeks. If the employee works 50 hours, the regular rate is $8=
=2E40
($420 divided by 50 hours). In addition to the salary, half the regular r=
ate,
or $4.20 is due for each of the 10 overtime hours, for a total of $462 fo=
r the
week. If the employee works 60 hours, the regular rate is $7.00 ($420 div=
ided
by 60 hours). In that case, an additional $3.50 is due for each of the 20=

overtime hours, for a total of $490 for the week.

In no case may the regular rate be less than the minimum wage required by=

FLSA.

If a salary is paid on other than a weekly basis, the weekly pay must be
determined in order to compute the regular rate and overtime pay. If the
salary is for a half month, it must be multiplied by 24 and the product
divided by 52 weeks to get the weekly equivalent. A monthly salary should=
 be
multiplied by 12 and the product divided by 52.

<p>Other Labor Laws

<p>(9) the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, which:

=D7 under the employment eligibility provisions, requires employers to ve=
rify
the employment eligibility of all individuals hired and keep Immigration =
and
Naturalization Service forms (I-9) on file for at least 3 years and for o=
ne
year after an employee is terminated;

=D7 under the F-1 provisions, provides for the enforcement of attestation=
s by
employers seeking to use aliens admitted as students in off-campus work.

More detailed information on FLSA and other laws administered by Wage-Hou=
r is
available from local Wage-Hour offices, which are listed in most telephon=
e
directories under U.S. Government, Department of Labor, Wage and Hour
Division. For those who have access to the Internet, further information =
may
also be obtained on the Wage and Hour Division Internet Home Page which c=
an be
located at the following address:
http://www.dol.gov/dol/esa/public/whd_org.htm.

<p><p>____________________________________________________________________
Get free email and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=3D=
1