FEDERAL LABOR STANDARD ACT
Let’s begin with an overview of the Federal Labor Standard Act (commonly referred to as FLSA or Wages and Hours Bill) as you need to understand your rights to overtime pay.
This is a federal statute of the United States. The Federal Labor Standard Act introduced the 40-hour work week, established a national minimum wage, guaranteed “time-and-a-half” for overtime in certain jobs and prohibited most employment of minors in “oppressive child labor”, a term that is defined in the statute. It applies to employees engaged in interstate commerce or employed by an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage.
Under the Federal Labor Standard Act, there are no limits to the number of hours an employer may require an employee to work in one workday or one workweek. HOWEVER, employers are required to pay employees an overtime rate of one and a half times their regular rate for all hours worked in a workweek in excess of 40, unless the employee is otherwise exempt from the FLSA’s overtime requirements. Also, if a non-exempt employee does not work more than 40 hours in a workweek, an employer is not required to pay overtime even if the employee works more than eight hours in one day or whether the employee works on a holiday, a Saturday, or a Sunday. Thus, in order for an employer to calculate the appropriate amount of overtime owed to employee, it must first determine the employee’s regular rate and hours worked by the employee in the applicable workweek.
If you have experienced any of the following situations with your employer, you might want to talk with an attorney regarding the Federal Labor Standard Act:
- You are paid a “day or daily” rate with not additional overtime pay even though you work more than 40 hours per week.
- You are paid hourly at “straight time” for all hours worked each week, including those hours over 40.
- You are paid a set “salary” no matter how many hours you work, but you are not really involved in management, supervision or decision making for the business. (We will discuss exempt and non-exempt employees later.)
- You are required to set up or close out “off the clock” (either before clocking in or after clocking out). (You take work home with you or work through your lunch or breaks but do not record this as working time.)
- You are treated as an “independent contractor” but your work is largely controlled by the company. (We will discuss independent contractors later.)
- You are periodically paid a bonus or something extra instead of being paid time and a half for each hour worked over 40 in a single work week.
If you have questions regarding the Federal Labor Standards Act.
