Physical Therapy Employment Mistakes
My thanks to my son Matthew Steinberg and his firm Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete LLP (Boston office) for contributing this article. Constangy specializes in workplace law with offices in Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
Other than the introduction, this is a publication of Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP. The information contained in this newsletter is not intended to be, nor does it constitute, legal advice. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Before you decide, ask us to send you free written information about our qualifications and experience. No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers. This email could be considered advertising under applicable laws.
IRS Circular 230 Notice: Federal regulations apply to written communications (including emails) regarding federal tax matters between our firm and our clients. Pursuant to these federal regulations, we inform you that any U.S. federal tax advice in this communication (including any attachments) is not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by the addressee or any other person or entity for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.
Introduction
We get asked all the time to help with recruiting PTs. Although that question may seem unrelated to our practice marketing services, it’s really not. That’s because good marketing creates capacity issues, which, in turn, lead to hiring and firing. In addition, implementing a PTRM system will change your staff’s routine. These changes are frequently met with resistance. For example, when implementing Internal Marketing Strategies, accountability for the patient follow-up process changes. If you’re not happy with how that’s going and need to make a staffing change, will you know the key “does” and “don’ts” for avoiding legal exposure?
Legal employment problems may sound like an unlikely occurrence, especially for small clinics, but according to recent liability insurance statistics from Hiscox, “US companies had at least a 10.5% chance of having an employment charge filed against them.” The rate is even higher in many states.
To help get you thinking about this important aspect of practice growth, here’s an article for PTs written for PTRM by a leading workplace law firm, Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete LLP.
The Top 3 Employment Law Issues Facing Physical Therapy Clinics
(And How To Avoid Them)
(And How To Avoid Them)
Physical therapists are on the front lines of healthcare. Delivering a quality patient experience requires time, expertise, and, perhaps most importantly, retention of dedicated personnel. Unfortunately, state and federal employment laws lay a number of legal traps for even the best-intentioned clinics. Based on our experience representing a variety of healthcare institutions with labor and employment matters, we’ve identified three of the most common sources of employment law liability facing clinics today:
1. Employee Misclassification/Wage and Hour Compliance
In addition, clinics must ensure that they are properly classifying their employees as “exempt” or “non-exempt” under federal and state law; all non-exempt employees must be paid at least the minimum wage for all hours worked plus time and one-half for all hours worked over 40. Deciding whether an employee is exempt (and can therefore be paid a fixed salary regardless of hours worked) depends on the salary level and specific tasks performed by the employee and can be especially thorny for office staff, such as administrators and office managers. Just one false step in this area can result in significant liability, including being on the hook for a former employee’s attorneys’ fees and multiple (double or treble) damages.
2. Anti-Discrimination Laws
3. Whistleblower and Retaliation Protections
Just like regular check-ups with a primary care physician or regular exercise, all employers benefit from proactively assessing their compliance with state and federal employment law. New laws have been going onto the books at a torrid pace in recent years at the state level, whose regulators can be less than forgiving even for inadvertent oversights or honest mistakes.
PT Referral Machine Newsletter Signup
Stay up to date on the latest trends in marketing for physical therapists – From The Trenches.
Leave A Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.