by Lance H. Delrie
Introduction
Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in 1938 to combat “labor conditions detrimental to the maintenance of the minimum standard of living necessary for health, efficiency, and general well-being of workers.”[1] The Act established minimum wage, overtime pay, record keeping, and child labor standards that affect full-time and part-time workers in the private sector and in federal, state, and local governments.[2] The FLSA also established an enforcement arm—the Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor (DOL).[3] Courts have long viewed the FLSA as congressional action to “protect the rights of those who toil [and] who sacrifice a full measure of their freedom and talents to the use and profit of others.”[4] On January 10, 2024, the DOL issued a final rule titled “Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act” (Current Independent Contractor Rule) that governs the classification of workers as employees or independent contractors under the FLSA. [5] This rule became effective on March 11, 2024 and replaced its 2021 predecessor.[6] Continue reading