Help with Your Wage Claim
Remer & Georges-Pierre PLLC was ranked by Lexis/Nexis and Martindale
Hubble in the Counsel to Counsel March 2005 edition of the Martindale
Pulse as Third in filing FLSA class-action lawsuits in the Southern District
of Florida.
Employees are usually paid on an hourly basis for each hour worked or are
paid a fixed salary regardless of the number of hours worked. The Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is the law that sets the federal minimum wage
and provides nonexempt employees with the right to overtime compensation.
The FLSA provides that employees receiving certain types of compensation
and performing certain types of job duties are exempt from overtime compensation.
Exempt categories include:
- Certain professional, executive, or administrative employees
- Certain outside salespersons
- Commissioned retail salespersons
- Certain truck drivers
Under the FLSA, nonexempt employees are entitled to one and one-half times
their rate of pay for hours worked over forty per workweek. Under the
law, many employees who receive a salary are actually entitled to overtime
compensation for hours worked in excess of forty weekly.
If you believe you are owed any wages, contact us immediately. We will
not charge you attorneys’ fees or costs for an overtime claim unless
we collect payment from the employer.
Unpaid overtime claims usually stem from:
-
Paying a “salary": Employers sometimes pay a salary to an employee when they are not truly
exempt from overtime requirements, claiming the employee is a supervisor.
However, if the employee does not regularly supervise two or more people,
the employee should be paid overtime for hours in excess of forty weekly.
-
Employee working off-the-clock time: Employers sometimes have employees do certain tasks before clocking in
or after clocking out. If an employer pays only 40 hours a week “on-the-clock”
but instructs the employee to work “off-the-clock,” the employer
is breaking the law.
-
Unpaid lunches or break Time: If the employee is not free from duties during a lunch break, the employer
must pay for that time. Also, employers usually must pay employees for
breaks lasting 20 minutes or less.
-
Work at home: If the employer directs the employee to work from home, all time worked
at home should be included as weekly hours worked. Hours worked in excess
of 40 per week should be paid as overtime.
-
Averaging two weeks: Employers sometimes combine two weeks of work to determine the wages owed
to an employee without paying overtime. If an employee is working more
than 40 hours in any week, any hours worked in excess must be paid at
overtime rate.
-
On-call work: If an employee must be on-call, the hours the employee actually works
for the company must be paid.
-
No overtime approved policy: Some employers have a policy for no overtime pay without prior approval.
However, if employees are allowed to work overtime, they are still owed
that time even with such policies in place.
Florida law requires employers to pay minimum wages. In addition to the
unpaid minimum wages or overtime compensation, an employee can seek double
damages. They are also entitled to recover attorneys’ fees and costs
if they prevail. Federal and state laws providing for minimum wage and
overtime compensation prohibit retaliation or
wrongful termination against employees who assert their rights to unpaid wages.
Our Miami overtime lawyer will represent employees with minimum wage or
overtime claims. We will also represent clients who were not paid their
final paycheck from their employer with no attorneys’ fees or costs
charged unless we collect payment. Additionally, we will represent employers
in wage and hour litigation and help employers to prevent wage and hour
litigation with a payroll review.
If you have any questions about overtime or wages,
contact us about your legal matter today!
