Monthly Archives: August 2016

Measure 97 – A Very PERSonal Sales Tax

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In November, voters will be asked to raise taxes on C Corporations, those taxed separately from its owners.  Measure 97 would tax corporations 2.5{0c2d428c3cefef4a77c472786cabf3d957ca1c1fde265c02f19cd1ec2d7db907} of gross sales over $25 million.  The measure would increase the state’s annual revenue by one-third, from approximately $9 billion to an estimated $12 billion. Measure 97 was designed as a revenue “cure” for Oregon’s state budget public pension/PERS shortfall.

Ask HR: Does drive time pay prevailing wage?

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Dear HR, We are looking at a prevailing wage job in another city. The current rules on travel time require employees be paid the prevailing rate at the various worksites to the project. I want to confirm this does not mean they are to be paid prevailing wage while driving between sites.   HR Answer: Prevailing wage rules only require prevailing wage rates while the employee is working on the job site, so drive time […]

Ask HR: Employee admits won’t pass drug test – What’s next?

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Dear HR, My new employee claims that they won’t pass the pre-employment drug test because they smoked marijuana last weekend. May I still hire them since Marijuana is now legal in Oregon?   HR Answer: Yes…No… or Maybe! An evaluation of the position’s responsibilities and safety risk… combined with your company’s DRUG TESTING policy, need to be considered. Under some circumstances employers may make exceptions to their own policies. If you would like assistance reviewing […]

Ask HR: Injured employee needs time off schedule.

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Dear HR, One of our employees—who has only been working for us a few weeks—fell off a skateboard and hurt their wrist. They requested for shifts to be covered for a week or so. Saturday night, the employee left a message that the injuries were more extensive than originally thought and needed to be off for six weeks. Due to the time off needed to recover, they stated it is understood if we needed to […]

Overtime for Exempt Employees

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The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has changed the overtime exempt wage test rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for some employee classifications.  To be considered an exempt employee the new yearly minimum salary level is $47,476.00.