The big news recently in the employment law arena is that Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. has agreed to settle 63 wage and hour lawsuits in 43 states. The settlement of these class actions will cost Wal-Mart somewhere between $352 million and $640 million!

What the heck did Wal-Mart do wrong that could cost them a half billion dollars? The thousands of class action plaintiffs allege that Wal-Mart managers pressured employees not to record all their time actually worked or to work through hours that were recorded as unpaid meal and rest breaks. Employees who actually recorded the overtime hours they worked were allegedly disciplined and humiliated. For example, one store manager allegedly posted the names of employees recording overtime next to the time clock to remind others that overtime was against company policy.

For its part, Wal-Mart says that these are old allegations and not indicative of how Wal-Mart does business today. Unfortunately, it is the way many employers in the Panhandle still do business. Here are a few points to remember to avoid wage and hour liability in your business: Continue reading Wal-Mart’s Costly Wage and Hour Mistakes →