Employers bear a responsibility to employees to classify them correctly and pay them appropriately according to overtime protections. However, many employers misclassify employees, denying them the benefits they deserve under the law. If your employer classifies you incorrectly, you may not receive proper overtime pay. Are you owed back pay by an employer who misclassified you, or is currently misclassifying you as exempt from overtime?
Not all employees receive overtime pay. If you meet three simple standards, your employer can classify you as exempt.
- If you are paid a salary for your position
- If you receive more than the weekly cap (recently $455 per week)
- If your job requires you to perform exempt tasks
If you meet these standards, your employer can correctly classify you as exempt from overtime pay. Also, it is important to understand that some certain types of jobs do not recognize the weekly pay cap, so you may have to work unpaid overtime if your job is one of them. Doctors and teachers, for instance, often do not have overtime benefits regardless of salary pay.
However, misclassified employees may deserve back pay benefits and even other damages. You can begin by asking your employer about your exemption classification and whether or not you are properly classified. They may give you a response that is inaccurate or questionable, but any information you can glean from your employer is useful. In some cases, simply bringing this to your employer’s attention will be enough to right the mistake.
If you do believe that your employer misclassifies you, do not wait to begin fighting for fair back pay compensation. An experienced attorney can help you examine the strengths of your case and build a strategy to fight for fair compensation and classification in the workplace.
Source: Findlaw, “Exempt Employees vs. Nonexempt Employees,” accessed Oct. 05, 2017