What Target workers need to know about federal pay rules

New guidance from the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division lays out federal baseline rules that apply to retail employees and offers a legal framework team members and stores can use when evaluating pay, breaks, overtime and commissioned-pay practices.

At the core of the guidance is the Fair Labor Standards Act requirement that nonexempt employees be paid time-and-a-half for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. Employers may not lawfully average hours across multiple weeks to avoid overtime, and accurate records of hours worked and wages paid must be maintained. That baseline matters for scheduling, shift-splitting and any corporate or store-level policies that change how hours are tracked.

Meal and rest period rules under federal law are narrower than many workers expect. Short paid rest breaks, generally 20 minutes or less, count as hours worked and must be paid. Bona fide meal periods, typically 30 minutes or more where the employee is completely relieved of duty, are not treated as hours worked under federal law and need not be paid. Many states, however, impose their own, more protective rules that require paid breaks or set different meal-period standards, so team members should check both federal guidance and state labor rules when assessing entitlement to paid time.

The guidance also highlights how time spent putting on or taking off protective gear can trigger pay obligations. When donning and doffing or related tasks are integral and indispensable to an employee’s principal activities, that time can be compensable and may start or extend the continuous workday for pay purposes. That point has practical implications for stores that require uniforms, safety equipment or other mandatory apparel that takes time to put on or remove before or after a shift.

Commissioned pay in retail can be subject to a narrow Section 7(i) overtime exemption, but the guidance sets firm conditions for its use. To qualify, employees must work for a retail or service establishment, the employee’s regular rate must exceed 1.5 times the applicable minimum wage for every hour worked in a workweek when overtime is worked, and more than half of the employee’s total earnings in a representative period must come from commissions. If any of those conditions fail, the employer must pay overtime for hours over 40.

Recordkeeping and remedies remain central: employers must keep accurate payroll and time records, and workers who believe their wage-and-hour rights were violated can file complaints with the Wage and Hour Division or pursue private legal claims in state or federal court. The federal guidance is a baseline; state laws often provide stronger protections or different thresholds.

For Target team members, the DOL framework gives a checklist to evaluate store policies and pay structures. Monitor schedules and pay stubs, raise questions with store leadership or HR when policies change, and compare state rules where you work. As retailers adjust operations and compensation models, workers should use these federal standards and local law to protect pay and hours.