By

Tim Coffield
In Morgan v. Sundance, Inc., 142 S. Ct. 1708 (2022), the Supreme Court held that prejudice is not a condition of finding that a party, by litigating too long, waived its right to stay litigation or compel arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act. Facts Morgan worked as an hourly employee at a Taco Bell franchise owned...
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Virginia’s Worker Misclassification Law, VA Code § 58.1–1900–05 (“WML”), emphasizes the rights of employees to be properly classified as such, and makes it unlawful for employers to require or request that employees sign documents incorrectly classifying them as independent contractors. While the WML does not provide a statutory right of action, an employee terminated in violation of...
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In Cruz v. Maypa, 773 F.3d 138 (4th Cir. 2014), the Fourth Circuit held that the limitations period for claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act was equitably tolled because the employer failed to post the required notice explaining workers’ rights under the FLSA. The decision is important because it means an employer who fails to post the...
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The Virginia Minimum Wage Act, VA Code § 40.1-28.8, et seq. (“VMWA”), sets minimum wage levels for certain categories of Virginia workers that are higher than the federal minimum wage.  Employer Defined The VMWA defines the “employers” it covers broadly, as including: any individual, partnership, association, corporation, or business trust or any person or group...
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virginia law - tim coffield - tightrope (1)
In Conner v. Cleveland County, N. Carolina, 22 F.4th 412 (4th Cir. 2022), the Fourth Circuit held that the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) allow claims for “overtime gap time.” Overtime gap time refers to a particular type of wage-payment scheme, aimed at making employees subsidize their own overtime wages, where...
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virginia - tim coffield - fire fight
The Virginia Gap Pay Act, VA Code § 9.1-700, et seq. (“VGPA”), provides that certain fire protection and law enforcement employees must be paid overtime compensation for time worked in the “gap.” The “gap” refers to the all hours of work between (a) the statutory maximum hours per work period under the Fair Labor Standards...
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lumber yard - tim coffield
In United States v. Darby, 312 U.S. 100, 61 S. Ct. 451 (1941), the Supreme Court held that Congress had power under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution to enact the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The Court held that the Commerce Clause permitted Congress, through the FLSA, to regulate the working conditions of employers...
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Virginia Overtime Wage Act: A Handy Guide to Overtime Protections for Virginia Employees
The Virginia Overtime Wage Act (“VOWA”) requires employers to pay covered employees overtime compensation. In some ways, the VOWA is similar to the overtime provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. In other ways, including the calculation of overtime rates for salaried employees, the availability of triple damages, and the time period for which...
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In Garcia v. San Antonio Metro. Transit Auth., 469 U.S. 528, 105 S. Ct. 1005 (1985), the Supreme Court held that Congress had power under the Commerce Clause to apply the Fair Labor Standards Act to a municipal transit authority. The case is important because it overruled a previous landmark decision and clarified that the...
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tim coffield - virginia anti-blacklisting law
Virginia’s Anti-Blacklisting Law, VA Code § 40.1-27, generally prohibits employers from willfully or maliciously preventing or attempting to prevent a former employee from obtaining new employment. While the statute does not describe a private cause of action, the conduct it prohibits could give rise to common law claims of tortious interference with contractual relationships or...
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