According to the Bureau for Labor Statistics, the average employee between 25 and 54 with children spends 8.9 hours a day working and only 1 hour a day eating and drinking. Seems about right. In our workaholic solar system, the office is the sun, and the employees are the asteroid belt, or something, revolving around it (we're not space experts). Whatever the metaphor you choose to describe it, and whatever industry you're in, working will likely take up the biggest chunk of your day, and the government is well aware.
While some of us keep in our own little bubble at work, no business is exempt from following standard labor practices set forth by the United States Department of Labor. In fact, there are 180 federal laws set in place to help regulate the practices of 10 million employers and protect the rights of 125 million employees country-wide. If your workplace is law-abiding, you'll have the required labor law posters visible to all employees on the premises. But do you ever take a moment to read them? Many employees are not aware of their breadth of rights, and many employers (especially for small businesses), are not aware of them either. These three impertinent labor laws are essential for any 9 to 5'er, or 9 to 9'er, to know.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Under the laws of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, otherwise known as OSHA, employees are required to work in a safe environment free of hazards that span a variety of categories including scaffolding, electrical, and machine safety. However, even if you don't work in a visibly "dangerous" environment, or if the problem you are experiencing will not cause serious injury or death, OSHA still protects you under De Minimus violations. While inspectors wouldn't fine a company for this, they will speak to the employer and keep the complaint on file.
Regardless of knowledge of OSHA violation, all employees have the right to file a complaint and request a workplace inspection if the employee believes there is a health risk for violations that currently exist or existed in the past 6 months. All confidentiality will be upheld. To file a complaint online, click here. You can also fax, mail, or call in a complaint, here. You will get protection from retaliation if you file a complaint. This means, you can't be fired, demoted, or transferred as a result of the complaint.
For more on health violations that could be lurking in your workplace, click here.
Family and Medical Leave Act
We all think we know about maternity leave, right? But there's always confusion as to whether there's a certain time limit, whether or not it's paid, and does that go for adoption, too? Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, employers of 50 or more are required to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to eligible employees. Eligibility includes within one year of the birth or adoption of a child, or a serious illness of the employee, employee's spouse, child or parent. This leave is not required for other family members or close friends.
Eligibility also involves having worked for the employer for at least 1 year, and at least 1,250 hours (that's a little over 52 days), 1 year preceding the leave. For more on whether you or your employee are eligible for for workplace leave, click here.
Wage and Hour Division
While many of us work 40-hour-per-week jobs, certain divisions keep employees working long into the night. But how do you know when you're working overtime? Can employers tell employees they're not allowed to work overtime?
According to the United States Wage and Hour Division, covered, nonexempt employees are required to receive overtime pay for hours exceeding 40 per workweek (this also means a regularly recurring period of 168 hours or 7 consecutive 24-hour periods) at a rate of one and half times the regular. And yes, for employees over 16 years old, there is "no limit" on the number of hours they may work in any given workweek. However, overtime pay is not required when employees work on weekends or holidays.
According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, "employ" means "to suffer or permit to work." The workweek includes all the time during which an employee is required to be on work premises or to their assigned workplace. The workday includes the time in between which the employee starts his or her "principal activity" and ends it: "The workday may therefore be longer than the employee's scheduled shift, hours, tour of duty, or production line time." This fact means that an employee can voluntarily keep working after his or her shift is up, to "finish an assigned task or to correct errors." Whatever the reason, the Fair Labor Standards Act requires that these hours be paid, as they are spent doing work.
For more information on overtime and other wage laws, check this out.
Labor laws are impertinent. They protect the rights of the most valuable assets to any business: its employees. It's essential to be aware of the U.S. labor laws in order to comply and uphold the business standards set in place to keep America's labor force safe.
For more on state-specific labor laws, click here.
Every time payday rolls around, I’m on top of the world. Jeff Bezos-level rich - even though I’m anything but. And then somehow the very next day, rent is due.
The cycle continues. The next payday, bills for my apartment. I find myself without a surplus of savings since I just moved and newly-furnished my apartment completely.
Even more terrifying is the looming presence of the holiday season. Halloween’s officially over and before we know it, hello Thanksgiving…and then there’s Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year’s. It’s insane.
I’ve been feeling very British lately. Not in a Union-Jack-obsessed, “Keep Calm and Carry-On” way. I went through that phase in 2012 with everyone else… no thank you. And it’s not even a surge of patriotism catalyzed by the Queen dying — I’m firmly team Diana and team Meghan.
Now that fall is officially here, the holidays will sweep in and I’ll have to contend with the fact that I won’t be spending them with my family in the UK. I went home to London earlier this year, so there’s not much left in my travel budget for another trip across the pond. A few domestic jaunts might be in my future, but the closest I’ll get to England this winter is watching Love Island and Love, Actually.
So in that spirit, I’ve been filling my days with content from my favorite Brits. I’m listening to all the old British rock bands I grew up listening to, patiently awaiting the new Arctic Monkeys album, and rewatching anything with Michaela Coel in it. I even shipped myself an order of British Baked Beans, so you know it’s dire.
I’ve also been watching British YouTubers like Grace Beverley — my favorite. Generally, I only go on YouTube to watch Vogue Beauty Secrets and AD Open Door videos. But I’m so glad I stumbled on Grace. Her content is a mix of London lifestyle (what lured me in), relatable entrepreneurship, and mindful productivity. I’m not a hustle-and-grind-girlboss, but as a creative person in a 9-to-5, I need all the help I can get to stay plugged in. So, the video “how to be really really really productive without getting overwhelmed” changed my approach to WFH.
Grace outlines her own productivity method: the to-do table. Instead of making a simple to-do list, she divides her tasks into a table that anyone can follow. As someone who’s survived with to-do lists for years, I recently implemented Grace’s method, and it’s revolutionized my workdays.
how to be really really really productive without getting overwhelmedwww.youtube.com
I follow her routine to a tee. Here’s how it works:
Essentially, she divides her daily responsibilities into four categories: quick ticks, tasks, projects, and non-negotiables.
- Quick Ticks: Actions that take less than 5-minutes
- Tasks: To-do’s that take up to 30-minutes. Probably don’t take too much brain energy.
- Projects: Long-term list items. These help guide your priorities, even if you’re not crossing them off in one day.
- Non-negotiables: Pick 3 things each day that you must get done. This is how you’ll truly measure success.
With everything written down and sorted, next address your schedule. Meetings, deadlines, and time blocks — whatever works best for you. Write it down. Then make a pact with yourself to stick to them.
This way of categorization provides a roadmap for prioritizing your day — making you far more productive. Have you ever spent the entire day on small tasks and then suddenly realized you hadn’t moved the needle on any task? Or do you spend way too much time on tasks that aren’t a priority? No more. With your non-negotiables laid out, you know what to laser-focus on and what to dedicate energy towards.
Also, it pays to know your working style. I’m not a morning person. Yet, I have to be up and at ‘em super early. So, first thing in the morning, I march through my Quick Ticks to warm me up. I set a time limit, so I can knock out some easy wins which is totally inspiring. Then I move on to bigger things without lingering on emails or admin. For others, it might be more helpful to tackle the big things with all that early-in-the-day brain power earlier.
Grace has great tips on avoiding overwhelm and burnout. My favorite is taking more intentional breaks rather than scrolling through social media. I call this scrolling “productive” because I’m “coming up with pitches.” Oh, the lies we tell ourselves. It’s more productive in the long run to giving my brain a break with non-screen related stimuli.
Grace’s solution? Set a timer to read a real, an actual book. I’ve never thought of this. It’s a genius way to check off some books on my TBR and kickstart my creativity. After reading a good book, I’m completely inspired to write. So having books near my desk helps me step away from the computer during my lunch break for an actual reset. (And yes, the current books I’m reading are by British authors: Assembly by Natasha Brown, and Love in Color: Mythical Tales from Around the World, Retold by Bolu Babalolu.)
In my pursuit of switching out my WFH set-up and getting my life together, I’ve engineered my workstation for success. With my new WFH essentials and Grace’s productivity technique, I’m revitalized for work — despite the fall blues and my melancholy about the pending holidays.
Here are the things getting me hyped for work and helping me crush my Grace Beverley-inspired to-do tables — no lists in sight:
Southwest Airlines Sale 2022
Pack your bags — Southwest Airlines is having a major sale! Fares are as low as $59 one-way if you book by October 3rd.
This end-of-summer super sale is a game-changer for your travel plans through the end of the year. Summertime travel gets all the glory. But why not take advantage of your long weekends, holidays, and PTO this fall. You’ll be surprised at how much travel you can fit in. Keep the fall/winter season exciting with domestic trips that give you all the excitement without breaking the bank. All thanks to Southwest.
Here’s the breakdown:
Where can you go?
You’ll find discounted tickets to and from most airports. Sale fares apply to cross country travel, and even Hawaii, Mexico, and the Caribbean! Whether you’re visiting a new city or revisiting your last beach vacation, this sale has fares to make your travel dreams come true.
What do the fares cover?
Southwest Airlines has multiple fare tiers, each with various benefits. Wanna Get Away fares start at $59, while Wanna Get Away Plus fares start at $89. You can also find great deals on Anytime fares, which offer priority boarding and express lanes. Then there’s Business Select tickets for a luxe experience at an affordable price point.
Do you have to be a Southwest Rapid Rewards member?
You may think these sale fares are too good to be true. Is there a catch? Do you have to be a Southwest Rapid Rewards member to access them? You’re in luck — anyone can attain these fares for a limited time.
But, insider tip, you should consider signing up for Southwest Rapid Rewards. With a free sign up, you earn points and miles with each trip you take. And with this sale, each dollar you spend on these discounted tix can stretch super far until you eventually earn free travel. The only thing better than a sale is free stuff.
So pack your bags and brace yourself for those chaotic airport lines. Everyone’s hopping on this deal so get on it. Don’t miss out — grab your sale tickets by October 3rd!
I’ve been browsing the Southwest Airlines site, checking out flights and dreaming.