The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced on August 28, 2018, that it has issued six new opinion letters. This release demonstrates the agency's continued commitment to providing meaningful compliance assistance to help employees understand their rights and ensure that employers have the information they need to comply with federal labor laws. The letters address compliance under both the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
"Opinion letters help provide greater clarity for American job creators and employees," said Wage and Hour Division Deputy Administrator Bryan Jarrett.
The opinion letters addressed the following issues:
- Organ donors' qualification for FMLA leave
- Compensability of time spent voluntarily attending benefit fairs and certain wellness activities
- Application of the movie theater overtime exemption to a movie theater that also offers dining services
- Application of the commissioned sales employee overtime exemption to a company that sells an internet payment software platform
- Volunteer status of nonprofit members serving as credentialing examination graders
- "No-fault" attendance policies and roll-off of attendance points under the FMLA
You can go here to find opinion letters: https://www.dol.gov/whd/opinion/guidance.htm
The Department now offers a search function allowing users to search opinion letters by key word, year, topic, and a variety of other filters. Go here for the search function: https://www.dol.gov/whd/opinion/search/fullsearch.htm
An opinion letter is an official, written opinion by WHD on how a particular law applies in specific circumstances presented by the person or entity requesting the letter. The public is encouraged to submit requests for opinion letters to WHD and can visit this webpage to learn how to request an opinion letter or determine whether existing agency guidance already addresses their questions.