I represent employees with overtime pay, wages and compensation claims. All “non-exempt” employees are entitled to overtime pay under New York Labor law and the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Unfortunately, employers commonly evade overtime requirements by misclassifying employees as exempt “executives”, “administrative” or “professionals,” even though the employees’ responsibilities would not entitle them to such a classification. If you work over forty (40) hours per week, even if you are paid a salary, you may be entitled to time and one-half overtime for every hour worked over the forty (40) hours. Under the law, you may also be entitled to liquidated or double damages for overtime violations.
Additionally, under federal law, an employer must also pay overtime to employees who are properly classified as “executives,” “administrative,” or “professionals” who earn $915 or less a week.
Some violations that may break federal and New York State overtime regulations include:
- Misclassification of job position as exempt from overtime
- Failure to pay due to lack of permission to work overtime
- Averaging hours over two work weeks
- Failure to pay for at-home work, on-call time or short daytime breaks
- Comp time instead of overtime pay
- Off-the-clock work
The FLSA has set the minimum wage at $7.25 per hour since 2009. Under New York Law, the minimum wage in New York City was raised to $10.50 per hour on December 1, 2016 for employers with 10 or fewer employees and $11.00 an hour for employers with 11 or more employees. Additionally, on December 1, 2016, the minimum wage for Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester Counties was raised to $10.00 an hour regardless of workforce size. Under New York and Federal minimum wage regulations, certain occupations and employees, such as food service employees, are paid a different minimum wage because the employees’ total compensation includes tips.
If you believe that your employer is violating your right to receive minimum wage or overtime compensation, you should be aware that laws exist to protect you. I would be pleased to meet and discuss your concerns with you. There is no charge for the initial consultation.