Non-Exempt Archives - Khadder Law

02 Apr Overtime claims and record-keeping

Posted at 10:49h in California Labor Code, California Law, Employment Categories, Employment Classifications, Exempt, Non-Exempt, Overtime, Remedies, Wages

A common issue arises regarding overtime claims and record-keeping, or the failure to keep records. Both California and federal law require employers to pay overtime to eligible employees. If your employer hasn't paid you overtime to which you're entitled, you can bring a lawsuit against your employer to recover that pay. In most cases, you can prove your claim using your employer's records. But what if your employer hasn't kept records of your overtime? Proving overtime claims and record-keeping It's more difficult to prove your claims if your employer doesn't have adequate records of your hours. Fortunately, California has laws regarding overtime claims and record-keeping. California law requires employers to keep and maintain records on the hours that their non-exempt employees work. If they fail to do so, they can be liable for penalties under the California labor code. Therefore, if your employer is complying with the law, you should be able to prove your claim with their records. But even if they don't, the law still allows you to pursue your claims. Proving claims without your employer's records Ideally, your employer has records that accurately reflect how much overtime you've worked. But this isn't always the case. While this can make things more complicated, it's not fatal. For example, suppose an employee sues her employer for failure to pay overtime and the employer hasn't kept records of that overtime. Typically, the court will allow the employee to estimate the amount of overtime they have worked. The court will take that into consideration in determining how much the employee can recover. The more precisely you can estimate the overtime, the better. If you believe that your employer has failed to pay you overtime that you have earned, contact the Khadder Law Firm today for a free consultation. For more, follow us on Twitter....

20 Mar Unscheduled Work Days and Overtime

Posted at 10:37h in California Labor Code, California Law, Employment Categories, Exempt, Non-Exempt

People often ask about unscheduled work days and overtime. How do unscheduled work days and overtime work. Does working an unscheduled shift entitle you to overtime pay? The answer depends on your schedule. Unfortunately, the mere fact of working an unscheduled day does not, by itself, entitle you to overtime pay. But, if that unscheduled shift pushes you over a certain threshold, you will be entitled to overtime pay. California law considers any work more than 8 hours in a day to be overtime. So if you work 9 hours in a day, you're entitled to 1 hour of overtime pay. Likewise for more than 40 hours in a week. So if you work 41 hours in a week, you're entitled to 1 hour of overtime pay (more if you worked more than 8 hours on any day). If you have worked 40 hours, Monday through Friday, and then you are required to come in on Saturday, and you are a non-exempt employee, then you're entitled to overtime pay for Saturday. This isn't because you worked a day you weren't scheduled tow work. Instead, it's because you worked over 40 hours in that week. But, if you haven’t worked 40 hours in week, from Monday through Friday, and you have to come in on a Saturday, then as long as it’s under 8 hours or has not exceeded 40 hours in a week, total, then you would just be entitled to your standard pay. If your employer has failed to pay you overtime pay that you've earned, contact the Khadder Law Firm today for a free consultation. For more, follow us on Twitter and Instagram....

02 Mar Different Employment Classifications

Posted at 10:24h in California Labor Code, Employment Categories, Exempt, Non-Exempt

There are three different employment classifications. Two of them fall within the employee classification. The other one falls into the independent contractor classification. Different employment classifications: Two types of employees The first are a exempt employees. An exempt employee is an employee that the labor code exempts from minimum wage and overtime requirements. The labor code sets out certain requirements to be exempt. Employees that meet those requirements are exempt. The second are non-exempt employees. Under the labor code, minimum wage and overtime pay requirements apply to non-exempt employees. This is the default classification for employees. Therefore, courts presume an employee is non-exempt unless the employer can affirmatively show they fit into one of the exempt categories. Non-employee classification: Independent contractors Lastly, there are independent contractors. Independent contractors are not employees. Any person an employer pays for work who is not an employee, is an independent contractor. Much of state and federal labor and employment law does not apply to independent contractors. For example, there is no minimum wage for independent contractors. Furthermore, employers need not provide benefits to independent contractors. But California law presumes employee status, so employers must prove someone is eligible to be an independent contractor if it comes before a court. These are the different employment classifications. If you have a job, you fall into one of these three categories. Unfortunately, employers regularly misclassify workers to save money. For example, your employer may classify you as exempt to avoid paying you overtime. But the law is independent of your employment agreement. As such, the law may still consider you non-exempt, even if your employer treats you as exempt. Instead, it simply means that your employer has misclassified you. Fortunately, the law provides remedies to victims of misclassification. Therefore, you should not assume that you are stuck with your classification even if you believe it is wrong. If you have question about how your employer has classified you, contact the Khadder Law Firm today for a free initial consultation. For more, follow us on Twitter and Instagram. And like us on Facebook....