Seasonal Employment

Many businesses rely on seasonal employees this time of year, and hopefully, that holds true this year. Seasonal employment has become a valuable part of our local and national economy. Recognizing the large number of employees likely to be hired for seasonal employment this year, the U.S. Department of Labor recently issued guidance for this year’s seasonal employment. If you are using seasonal employees this year, we have developed some suggestions to help make life better for both employers and employees.

• Make sure you have the proper documentation supporting an employee’s right to work;
• Provide proper breaks for stockroom and warehouse personnel;
• Employees should be paid for their time if they have to work through their breaks;
• Salespeople should be paid for prepping and closing out their cash drawers or areas;
• Employees should be paid at least minimum wage;
• Anything over 40 hours during a work week is overtime;
• Full and part time schedules can be used, as defined by the employer;
• There are few limitations on the number of hours that can be worked in a day. However, there are industry-specific rules that might apply in your situation. For example, there are limits under the Department of Transportation for hours driven by truck drivers;
• Provide education on the temporary employees’ rights to COVID-related sick time and expanded FMLA benefits;
• Educate the seasonal workers on proper safety standards for the business, state and local COVID regulations, and company safety policies;
• Remind employees and co-workers to watch for symptoms and to stay home if they are sick.

We hope you have a happy and productive holiday season. Give us a call if you’d like more specific guidance on seasonal employment this year.