Overtime Pay Claims
Q. What is overtime pay?
A. Overtime pay is additional compensation for working long hours. Usually, overtime pay is one and a half times your hourly rate for every hour over eight in one day or forty in one week. There also is premium pay, usually twice the normal rate, for the seventh day of work in a week.
Q. Who is entitled to overtime pay?
A. Most employees are entitled to overtime pay, and many of them are unaware of their rights. Employees are entitled to overtime pay unless they fit into a specific exemption excluding them from such pay. In general, the exemptions are for "executive," "administrative" and "professional" positions. There are technical definitions for these terms which are not simply what most people expect, so it is best to get an attorney's advice on this matter.
Q. What if I have agreed to be paid a salary, without extra compensation for extra hours?
A. By law, you cannot waive your right to overtime pay. You are entitled to overtime pay, even if you have accepted a salary or agreed that you will not be paid extra for overtime hours.
Q. Doesn't receiving overtime pay indicate that I have little responsibility or importance?
A. No. Many employees, although operating at a high level with significant responsibilities, are not exempt from the overtime requirements. The overtime laws provide broad coverage, and many higher level employees are entitled to the extra compensation.
Q. My employer insists that I am exempt. Wouldn't It know best?
A. Not necessarily. At times, employers deliberately fail to pay legally required overtime pay in order to save money. Often, however, employers are confused about the laws, and have not obtained appropriate legal advice.
Q. Can I prove a claim if I have not kept time records?
A. Yes. Indeed, in many cases daily time records are not kept, particularly if an employee has erroneously been considered exempt. Although time records help, claims can be supported by other evidence, such as your personal recollection of your work hours, or inferences from work product.
Q. Should I file a claim against my current employer, or wait until after I've left?
A. Don't wait. You should assert your right to compensation as soon as possible, to avoid a limit on your claim due to passage of time, to be able to gather the best evidence, and to begin receiving your appropriate compensation. Employees are often concerned about retaliation for having brought a claim. The law prohibits retaliation, and provides legal remedies if there is such retaliation.
Q. How far back in time may I go in making a claim?
A. In general, you can make a claim for wages earned during the four years preceding the filing of the overtime claim.
Q. What should I do if I suspect that I am entitled to unpaid overtime pay?
A. Seek legal advice. The laws are complicated, and an opinion should be given only by someone knowledgeable about the issues. You should have a specific analysis done for any job in which you suspect you were denied overtime pay. The initial consultation with our law firm is free. Let us know if you are interested in hiring us on a "no fee if no recovery" basis.
Q. What are the most common errors in classifying employees?
A. Employees often do not spend sufficient time on exempt duties to be exempt. For the "executive" and "administrative" exemptions from overtime, you must spend more than half of your work time actually doing exempt duties. For example, someone with the title of "supervisor" who spends little time in performing actual supervisory duties is not exempt and is entitled to overtime pay. Another common misunderstanding is that the legal definition of "professional" is very narrow. It does not include many employees who consider themselves or are considered by others as exempt "professionals." Examples of frequently mischaracterized employees include:
A. Overtime pay is additional compensation for working long hours. Usually, overtime pay is one and a half times your hourly rate for every hour over eight in one day or forty in one week. There also is premium pay, usually twice the normal rate, for the seventh day of work in a week.
Q. Who is entitled to overtime pay?
A. Most employees are entitled to overtime pay, and many of them are unaware of their rights. Employees are entitled to overtime pay unless they fit into a specific exemption excluding them from such pay. In general, the exemptions are for "executive," "administrative" and "professional" positions. There are technical definitions for these terms which are not simply what most people expect, so it is best to get an attorney's advice on this matter.
Q. What if I have agreed to be paid a salary, without extra compensation for extra hours?
A. By law, you cannot waive your right to overtime pay. You are entitled to overtime pay, even if you have accepted a salary or agreed that you will not be paid extra for overtime hours.
Q. Doesn't receiving overtime pay indicate that I have little responsibility or importance?
A. No. Many employees, although operating at a high level with significant responsibilities, are not exempt from the overtime requirements. The overtime laws provide broad coverage, and many higher level employees are entitled to the extra compensation.
Q. My employer insists that I am exempt. Wouldn't It know best?
A. Not necessarily. At times, employers deliberately fail to pay legally required overtime pay in order to save money. Often, however, employers are confused about the laws, and have not obtained appropriate legal advice.
Q. Can I prove a claim if I have not kept time records?
A. Yes. Indeed, in many cases daily time records are not kept, particularly if an employee has erroneously been considered exempt. Although time records help, claims can be supported by other evidence, such as your personal recollection of your work hours, or inferences from work product.
Q. Should I file a claim against my current employer, or wait until after I've left?
A. Don't wait. You should assert your right to compensation as soon as possible, to avoid a limit on your claim due to passage of time, to be able to gather the best evidence, and to begin receiving your appropriate compensation. Employees are often concerned about retaliation for having brought a claim. The law prohibits retaliation, and provides legal remedies if there is such retaliation.
Q. How far back in time may I go in making a claim?
A. In general, you can make a claim for wages earned during the four years preceding the filing of the overtime claim.
Q. What should I do if I suspect that I am entitled to unpaid overtime pay?
A. Seek legal advice. The laws are complicated, and an opinion should be given only by someone knowledgeable about the issues. You should have a specific analysis done for any job in which you suspect you were denied overtime pay. The initial consultation with our law firm is free. Let us know if you are interested in hiring us on a "no fee if no recovery" basis.
Q. What are the most common errors in classifying employees?
A. Employees often do not spend sufficient time on exempt duties to be exempt. For the "executive" and "administrative" exemptions from overtime, you must spend more than half of your work time actually doing exempt duties. For example, someone with the title of "supervisor" who spends little time in performing actual supervisory duties is not exempt and is entitled to overtime pay. Another common misunderstanding is that the legal definition of "professional" is very narrow. It does not include many employees who consider themselves or are considered by others as exempt "professionals." Examples of frequently mischaracterized employees include:
- assistant managers
- trainee managers
- supervisors also doing the same work as subordinates
- computer programmers and analysts
- web page designers
- accountants