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ANCOR MEDICAID ALERT

For more information: Suellen Galbraith, 703-535-7850

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR CONDUCTING
WAGE AND HOUR NATIONAL COMPLIANCE SURVEY
OF RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITIES (GROUP HOMES)

ANCOR was notified March 3, 2004, by the Employment Standards Administration Wage and Hour Division, that the WHD will conduct a statistically valid investigation-based national compliance survey of residential care facilities and nursing homes starting in the next few weeks and lasting for several months.

The survey will determine employers’ compliance with the minimum wage, overtime and child labor requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and will measure both the number and severity of violations.

The residential care industry includes all firms primarily engaged in providing residential social and personal care for children, the aged, and special categories of persons with some limits on the ability for self-care [including individuals with mental retardation and other developmental disabilities], but where medical care is not a major element. Employees may perform work at one or more locations and in some instances may reside on the premises.

WHD’s Fact Sheet #33: Residential Care Facilities (Group Homes)

According to ETA Administrator Tammy McCutchen: The long-term health care industry--specifically nursing homes and residential care facilities—was selected for this survey because it traditionally employs large numbers of low-wage earners and because of the great demographic changes our society is experiencing due to a rapidly aging population; thus rendering this industry one of the fastest growing industries in the country.

Full WHD investigations will be conducted of a random sample of employers within both of these industries. The sample is selected from the universe of employers by an independent third party. The WHD is beginning to schedule the randomly selected sites. The survey investigations are conducted pursuant to the same standard procedures as any other WHD investigation.

As a reminder, ANCOR reported on targeted compliance WHD surveys of residential care facilities in 1998 and 2001. In 1998, in a baseline survey, WHD found 57 percent of residential care facilities in compliance with the minimum wage, overtime and child labor requirements of FLSA. In 1998, the survey yielded the following results: with the.

• 92% of those employers found in violation of the FLSA violated the overtime regulations.
• 3% of the residential living facilities violated the FLSA’s child labor provisions.
• Slightly over half (56%) of the 180 firms that had not been previously investigated by Wage and Hour were in compliance while a similar percentage (55%) of facilities with previous FLSA violations were now in compliance.

The WHD follow-up survey in 2001 disclosed a 60 percent compliance level with FLSA provisions.

In addition to helping assess the impact of WHD compliance assistance, partnership and enforcement activities, the surveys also provide information on the most common types of violations, thus allowing WHD to design more effective compliance strategies.

NOTE: As part of the investigation, employers will be asked if they belong to any national associations. If you are the subject of one of these compliance surveys, be sure to state that you are a member of the American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR).

For additional information:

• Fact Sheet #33: Residential Care Facilities (Group Homes): (www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/whd/whdfs33.htm).
  

Also, the following Fact Sheets include guidance regarding common FLSA violations by the WHD in residential care facilities, group homes, ICFs/MR:

• Fact Sheet #53: The Health Care Industry and Hours Worked
• Fact Sheet #54: The Health Care Industry and Calculating Overtime Pay
• Fact Sheet #52: The Health Care Industry and Youth Employment
• Fact Sheets #53; #54; and #52 were not yet available on the WHD Fact Sheet web site on 3/03/04, but should be online soon. Check for them here.

Fact Sheets 53, 52, 54 will be on ANCOR’s home page (www.ancor.org) Monday, March 8th.

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