|
Orlando,
Florida Overtime Lawyer / Attorney
My employer told
me that since I am being paid a salary, I am not
eligible to receive overtime pay
(time-and-a-half) no matter how many hours I
work in a week. Is he correct?
(Back to Questions)
No. Just being paid on a salary basis is not the
test. Your employer has to meet certain
exemptions. Genuine executives, administrative
employees and professionals do not qualify for
overtime pay so long as they are paid by their
employer on the "salary basis" as defined by
overtime laws. In addition, administrators and
professionals can be paid on a "fee basis" which
is also very narrowly defined. Simply paying an
employee a fixed salary does not mean that the
employee is exempt from minimum wage and
overtime pay. An employee is exempt only if the
employee meets all the requirements of a
specific exemption as defined by the Fair Labor
Standards Act ("FLSA"). While payment on a
salary basis may be one of several requirements
for an exemption, it does not necessarily mean
an employee is automatically exempt from being
paid time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40.
For example, a secretary who is paid a salary
does not meet the requirements of any of the
white collar exemptions and is still entitled to
overtime pay. The legal distinction is not
between salaried employees and hourly employees;
it is between exempt and nonexempt employees.
Many employees are classified as executives,
administrative employees, or professionals who
really do not qualify for those designations
under the FLSA overtime laws. Many employers
bestow fancy job titles to employees as an
attempt to deny them overtime pay. However, it
is your actual work duties that matter, not your
title.
(Back to Questions)
For a confidential
consultation regarding potential employment
dispute cases, contact the Law Office of N. James
Turner, Esq., P.A. at
(407) 422-6464 or email
us by utilizing our confidential
submission form.
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