80/20 Rule In Effect
The DOL’s new tip credit regulations went into effect on December 28th. The regulation states that restaurants cannot take a tip credit for the time spent on tasks considered “directly supporting work” that exceeds 20% of the workweek or 30 continuous minutes.
While the NRA filed an emergency lawsuit in a Texas federal court challenging the rules and asking for an immediate injunction while the case is being considered, it is expected that the court will allow the new regulations to remain in effect until February.
It is important to continue to take steps to comply with the new rules. Actions to consider taking include:
- Conducting an audit of the job duties performed by your tipped employees.
- Training managers on the new requirements.
- Implementing new policies and procedures on side work.
- Changing staffing model to hire new staff to perform side work tasks.
- Adopting new timekeeping protocols for tipped employees.
