Welcome to Issue #2 of The Compliance Brief. Every Tuesday I break down the HR and labor law updates that actually matter to small businesses — in plain English, no legal jargon.

The DOL Is Collecting More Back Wages Than Ever — Is Your Payroll Clean?

The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division recovered $259 million in back wages for nearly 177,000 workers in 2025 — the highest amount since 2019, and a 33% increase from the year before.

The most common violations? Unpaid overtime, misclassified exempt employees, invalid tip pools, and off-the-clock work.

The message is clear: wage-and-hour enforcement is not slowing down.

Action step: Review your overtime practices this week. Are all employees classified correctly? Is anyone working off the clock? Are your tip pools set up correctly? These are the exact areas DOL is targeting.

1. EEOC is still coming after small employers

The EEOC recently recovered $1.25M from a janitorial company for national-origin discrimination and $324K from a home care franchisee for pregnancy discrimination. Small businesses are not off the radar.

2. Paid leave laws keep expanding

Connecticut expanded paid sick leave to employers with 11+ employees. Washington updated paid family leave job-restoration rules. If you have employees in either state, check your policies now.

3. Check your exempt salary thresholds

Several states adjusted their salary exemption thresholds in 2026. If you have employees in multiple states, your exempt/non-exempt classifications may need updating.

✅ Review overtime records — is anyone owed back pay you don't know about?

✅ Check employee classifications — exempt, non-exempt, contractor

✅ If you have staff in Connecticut, Washington, or Delaware — verify your leave policies are up to date

✅ Look up your state's 2026 salary exemption threshold if you have salaried exempt employees

The DOL's PAID Program lets employers voluntarily self-report wage violations, pay back wages, and avoid lawsuits. If you suspect any payroll issues, this is worth knowing about.

Find it at dol.gov — search "PAID program."

That's it for this week. Short, actionable, no fluff.

If this was useful, forward it to another small business owner who could use it.

See you next Tuesday.

The Compliance Brief thecompliancebriefhq.com

This is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.