Overtime and Wage and Hour Claims
Employers are generally required to:
- Pay employees at least the current minimum wage for their hours worked
- Pay certain nonexempt employees 1.5 times their regular hourly rate for time worked over 40 hours in a workweek.
Employers are generally not allowed to:
- Inform non-exempt workers that they are not entitled to overtime
- Label workers as salaried even though they are still entitled to overtime pay
- Designate periods as breaks even though work is still required to be performed
- Not pay tipped employees the appropriate minimum wage
- Have employees work "off the clock"
- Refuse to pay employees for certain hours worked (such as putting on uniforms or equipment)
Employers are not permitted to unlawfully discriminate against employees in the payment of their wages on the basis of race, gender, age, disability, religion, national origin, or any other protected class.
If the employer allows you to work, you must get paid for all of the time you worked, regardless if you agreed to work for less than minimum wage or for free. Under the FLSA an employee cannot waive their rights. If an employer makes a deal with an employee allowing the employee to work off the clock for tips or for some other purpose, the employer still has to pay wages.
Overtime - Did your boss fail to pay you for working overtime?
Some employers attempt to avoid paying overtime. Some examples include:
- Paying artificially low hourly rates
- Calculating overtime as comp time or time off in lieu of overtime pay
- Defining payable hourly time as standby or on-call time.
Overtime must be paid during a regular pay period and not delayed until the future.
It is unlawful for an employer to retaliate against an employee for filing a complaint or start proceedings under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”).
Wage Claims
If an employer refuses to pay the appropriate wages for hours worked by making excuses, this may be considered unpaid wages and unjust enrichment claims. Agreements regarding compensation or commissions are breached.
Sales representatives are particularly exposed to schemes by employers resulting in breaches of commission agreements and can suffer losses due to complex commission plans and structures. There are remedies for employees against fraudulent commission plans. Many state and federal regulations offer whistleblower protections, prohibiting retaliation against employees who raise legitimate complaints regarding unpaid wages and commissions.
What can a Discriminated Employee Possibly Recover?
Employers found liable for violating the FLSA may be required to pay back pay for overtime at the rate of 1.5 times the regular hourly rate, liquidated damages for a willful violation in an amount equal to the back pay damages due, and attorney's fees and costs. Collective actions involving a group of employees who have been subjected to overtime violations may also provide additional relief for an entire workforce. Employees are entitled to be properly paid for every hour worked, and under the FLSA's liquidated damages provision wage differentials are almost always doubled to compensate the employee up to $2 for every $1 that was not paid to them on a timely basis.
Time Limits
Strict time limitations apply with wage claims. The sooner a claim is filed, the more losses that may be recovered on your behalf.
If you believe you are not being paid wages that are fair or are owed to you by your employer, Henrichsen Law Group, P.L.L.C.’s employment law team will be your partner in protecting your rights. We are experienced at representing employees with wage and hour claims. Our attorneys handle cases in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Florida, and Georgia.
