In Georgia, the minimum wage rate is $5.15 per hour, which is significantly lower than the federal rate. However, with limited exceptions, employers are required to pay $7.25 per hour, as mandated by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The state permits municipalities to establish their own wage laws, but only two cities have done so, and these laws only affect public employees. In 2017, Clarkston became the first city in Georgia to set an hourly rate of $15 for city employees. Shortly thereafter, Atlanta followed suit, implementing incremental increases until reaching $15 per hour for city workers.

Required Posters:

• Equal Pay for Equal Work

• Unemployment Insurance

• Vacation Unemployment Insurance

• No Smoking Sign

• Smoking Permitted - No One Under the Age of 18 Allowed

• Bill of Rights for Injured Workers

• Workers’ Compensation Official Notice (three options available):

   

  Option 1 - Panel of Physicians:

  • Must include at least six physicians or professional associations.
  • Must include one orthopedic surgeon, a minority physician, and four other qualified physicians, with no more than two industrial clinics.
  • The employer selects the physicians, maintaining control if the panel meets these requirements.
  • The panel doctor is the primary authorized treating physician.
  • The injured worker is allowed one change to another doctor on the panel without approval.

  Option 2 - Conformed Panel:

  • Requires a minimum of 10 physicians or professional associations.
  • Must include a general surgeon and chiropractor, in addition to the requirements for the traditional Panel of Physicians.
  • The main difference is the expanded number of physicians and the inclusion of a general surgeon and chiropractor.
  • The injured worker is allowed one change to another doctor on the panel without approval.

  Option 3 - Managed Care Organization (MCO):

  • Allows insurers and employers to contract with a Board Certified MCO to provide a health care program for injured workers.
  • The program includes health care providers, financial incentives to reduce service costs and utilization, peer review, service utilization review, dispute resolution, safety, and an early return-to-work program.
  • Participating organizations must provide each covered employee with an information card explaining the program and a toll-free, 24-hour phone number for on-the-job injuries.
  • The employer must post the MCO procedures prominently on the business premises.

Benefits:

• Panel of Physicians: Structured and allows control over medical treatment.
• Conformed Panel: Structured with an expanded choice of physicians.
• MCO: Comprehensive managed care program, suitable for organizations with multiple locations, offering discounts similar to a PPO.

Employers must pay overtime for hours worked over 40 in a workweek at a rate of one-and-a-half times the regular rate of pay. There is no daily overtime requirement in Georgia.

Exemptions apply to white-collar workers in executive, administrative, professional, and outside sales positions. To qualify for the exemption, these employees must be paid on a salary basis.

Georgia has specific recordkeeping rules that businesses must follow. Employers are required to keep information regarding each employee on file for at least four years, starting from the calendar year in which the paycheck was due.

According to state law, employers should maintain the following data:

• Name
• Social Security number
• State(s) where services are performed: If any services are performed outside Georgia and are not incidental to services within the state, include the employee’s base of operations (or if there is no base, the place from which services are directed or controlled) and the employee’s residence (by state).
• Employment dates: Date of hire, rehire, or return to work after a temporary layoff, and date of separation from work with the reason for separation.
• Remuneration details:
  • Cash remuneration, including special payments (e.g., bonuses and gifts).
  • Non-cash remuneration, including special payments (e.g., bonuses and gifts).
  • Allowances or reimbursements for travel or other business expenses, including dates, amounts paid, and amounts actually incurred and accounted for by the employee.
• Payment periods:
  • Fixed weekly or longer period rate.
  • Fixed daily rate.
  • Fixed hourly rate.
  • Piece-rate or other variable-pay basis, with the method of computation.
• Covered and exempt employment:
  • Hours spent in covered employment.
  • Hours spent in exempt employment.
• Pay period details:
  • Beginning and ending dates of each pay period.
  • Total remuneration paid each quarter for services.

Employers must maintain records in a format that allows for easy inspection, detailing:

• Earnings by pay-period weeks (or by calendar weeks or other seven consecutive day periods if not paid weekly).
• Weeks of less than full-time work.
• Time lost due to the employee’s unavailability for work.