STATEMENT OF SCOPE
Department of Workforce Development
Rule No.
Chapter
DWD
27
2
, Wis. Admin. Code
Relating to
Minimum Wage
Rule Type
Permanent
Detailed Description of the Objective of the Proposed Rule
The proposed rule will
m
odify
ch.
DWD
272
relating to
minimum wages to implement statut
o
ry updates from
2015 Wisconsin Act 55
(Act 55) and to ensure
conformity
with federal regul
a
tions.
Description of Existing Policies Relevant to the Rule, New Policies Proposed to be Included in the Rule, and an Analysis of Policy Alternatives
De
finitions under s.
DWD
272
.01
for "minor employee," "opportunity employee," and "tipped employee" are outdated. The proposed rul
e will update these definitions.
Under s.
DWD
272.09
the definitions "Institution,"
"IWRP," "sheltered workshop," "student learner," and "worker with a disability" are outdated.
In addition, the
language under this section references terms such as "menta
lly ill” and "retarded person."
The proposed rule
will update these definitions and modernize the language to remove archaic references.
Cu
rrently,
ch.
DWD 272 references the term "living wage." Act 55 repealed the definition of "living wage" and references "minimum wage." The proposed rule will align
ch.
DWD 272
with state statute by modifying references to "living wage."
The existing rule
requires employers to keep time records for
specified exempt employees. Federal law does not extend record-keeping requirements to exempt persons, while state law does. The proposed rule will remove the requirement that employers keep time records for the specified exempt employees.
Chapter
DWD 272
does not contain any provisions about the use of direct deposit or payroll debit cards for an employees paycheck
,
or
an employee having
electronic
access
to
their pay stub
. The proposed rule will allow these payroll practices as long as the
services are
available to employees at no additional cost.
The proposed rule will also modify
ch.
DWD 272
and make other minor revisions necessary to conform to federal regulations and state statute.
The alternative to proceeding with this rule is to do nothing, which would leave the unchanged provisions that are out of date in conflict with state statutes and federal regulations
.
Detailed explanation of statutory authority for the rule, including the statutory citation and language
"
(7)
Minimum wage established by department
. The department
shall promulgate rules providing the minimum wage for all
of the following:
(a) An employee or worker with a disability covered under a
license under s.
104.07
.
(b) A student learner.
(c) A student employed by an independent college or university
for less than 20 hours per
w
eek.
(8)
Employment exempted by department.
The department
shall promulgate rules e
x
empting from the minimum wage
requirements under
subs. (1) to (7) a
ll of the follo
w
ing:
(a) A person engaged in casual employment in and around an
employer’s home on an i
r
reg
u
lar or intermittent basis for not more
than 15 hours per week.
(b) A person who resides in the home of an employer who, due
to advanced age or physical or mental disability, cannot care for
his or her own needs, for the purpose of compa
n
ionship and who
spends not more than 15 hours per week on general household
work for the employer.
(c) An elementary or secondary school student performing student
work−like activ
i
ties in the student’s school.
"
Section
104.045
,
Stats., provides
:
"
104.045 Tips, meals, lodging, and hours worked. The department shall promulgate rules governing all of the following:
(1) The counting of tips or similar gratuities toward fulfillment of the employer’s
obligation
under this chapter.
(2) The deduction of meals or lodging provided by an employer to an employee from the e
m
ployer’s obligation under this chapter.
(3) The determination of hours worked by an employee during which the employee is e
n
titled to the minimum wage established under s.
104.
035
.
"
Section
104.07
, Stats., provides:
"
104.07 Rules; license to employ; student learners;
sheltered workshops. (1) The depar
t
ment shall promulgate
rules, and, except as provided under subs. (5), (6), and (7), grant
a l
i
cense to any employer who employs any employee for whom
the minimum wage established under s.
104.035
is not commensurate
with the employee’s ability. Each license so granted shall
establish a wage for any such employees of the licensee.
(2)
The department shall promulgate rules, and, except as provided
under subs. (5), (6), and (7), grant a license to a sheltered
workshop, to permit the employment of workers with disabil
i
ties
at a wage that is commensurate with their ability and productivity.
A l
i
cense granted to a sheltered workshop under this subsection
may be issued for the entire wor
k
shop or a department of the workshop.
"
"
103.005 Powers, duties and jurisdiction of department. (1)
The department shall adopt reasonable and proper rules and regulations relative to the exercise of its powers and authorities and proper rules to govern its proceedings and to regulate the mode and manner of all investigations and hearings.
"
Estimate of amount of time that state employees will spend developing the rule, and other resources necessary to develop the rule
The total amount of staff time is estimated to be
100
hours.
List with description of all entities that may be affected by the proposed rule
The proposed rule
would
affect employers
, employees, and organizations that operate sheltered workshops or other programs which receive licenses to pay wages at a subminimum rate
.
Summary and preliminary comparison with any existing or proposed federal regulation that is intended to address the activities to be regulated by the proposed rule
The
Wages and
Fair
Labor Standards Act
(FLSA) establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards effecting employees in the private sector and in Federal, State and local governments. There are no federal regulations related to
direct deposit, payroll debit cards or access
to employee paystubs electronically. The proposed rule will modify and update
ch.
DWD 272
to conform to standards specified by FLSA.
Anticipated economic impact of implementing the rule (note if the rule is likely to have an economic impact on small businesses)
It is anticipated that t
he proposed rule w
ould
make regulatory compliance easier
for small businesses
. The rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses.
Contact Person:
Jim Chiolino, DWD Equal Rights Division
P
. O. Box 8928, Madison WI 53708
(608) 266-3345
