Overtime Lawyer

in Houston, Texas

Overtime & Workers Wage Claim

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), nearly all employees are guaranteed one and one-half times their regular rates of pay if they exceed 40 hours of work per week. While this law protects workers' rights, unscrupulous employers still attempt maximizing their company's profits by withholding overtime payment from employees. If your employer has denied you overtime pay, you may have the grounds for an overtime and wage claim lawsuit.

Common Scenarios for Wage Claim Lawsuits

Most workers are unaware of their rights, which is why the Fair Labor Standards Act allows you to sue for back overtime pay for up to three years from the date you file a lawsuit. Common scenarios where an employer withholds overtime pay from their employee include:

• Paying an employee a flat salary regardless of the hours worked.
• Calling someone an "independent contractor" even though the economic realities show that the person is really an employee and, therefore, entitled to overtime pay.
• Miscalculated the overtime rate by not including periodically paid "bonuses" or incentive pay.
• Paying a bonus instead of overtime pay.
• Paying straight pay (regular rate) for overtime hours.
• Failing to pay minimum wage.
• Incorrectly categorizing employees as exempt, such as salaried employees who are given the title of a manager but do not have any real supervisor authority.
• Failing to pay for breaks, which are typically 20 minutes and must be counted as hours worked.
• Failing to pay for meal periods. If an employee is not fully relieved from his duties while eating a meal, they may have a rightful claim to those wages.
• Requiring that overtime be "pre-approved" before an employee will receive overtime pay.
• Issuing two pay checks for the same workweek, one for the first 40 hours and another for all hours over 40, all of which is paid at the same regular rate.  Some employers will even create a separate company and issue different checks, even though the employee is doing essentially the same work.
• Not paying employees for all time actually worked, including time it takes to prepare for work such as putting on special clothing or filling out preliminary paper work.
• Requiring employees to clock out at a given time even thought they work beyond that time to finish up the day's work.
• Not paying an employee for time spent traveling between two different job sites or customer's locations.
• Requiring employees to take work home to complete on their own time and not paying them for such time.

30 minutes a day adds up quickly

Many times, employees are reluctant to report a violation of the overtime laws because they are denied a small amount of time, say 30 minutes each day.  However, based on a five day work week, that adds up to 2 ½ hours per week or 130 hours per year. If you earn $10 per hours, you could be denying yourself of up to $1,950 per year.

How much can I recover?

The law allows you to recover two years of your last wages from the date you file a claim or up to three years back if the violation was willful.   

Also, the Fair Labor Standards Act and other overtime laws allow you to recover double the amount of overtime pay that should have been paid to you in the beginning.  This essentially serves as a penalty against the employer for violating the law.

I am afraid I will get fired if I file a claim

The overtime and wage laws, like many employee protection laws, strictly prohibit an employer from taking any action against you in retaliation for filing a claim or for even questioning your employer's practices.   So, it is illegal for an employer to fire you for exercising your rights under the overtime and wage laws. 

How much are the attorneys' fees to pursue a claim?

We do not charge our clients unless we are able to make a recovery for them.   This is known as a "contingency fee."  Put simply, if we don't win, there is no charge.  Moreover, the wage and overtime laws require an employer to pay the employee's attorney's fees and basic costs of the claim.  This part of the law is a big hammer. It forces employers to evaluate the claim seriously from the very beginning before they become more expensive.  Indeed, there are cases upheld by appellate courts where the court awarded the claiming more than $100,000 in attorney's fees when the amount of the overtime owed was under $5,000. 

Overtime Exemptions

According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, certain scenarios exempt employees from minimum wage and overtime pay. Unless your employer can prove that you meet the detailed requirements of the exemption, your employer is required to pay you overtime for your work.   It is very difficult for employers to satisfy their burden to prove the exemption applies to a given employee.   They often can satisfy one part of the exemption tests (for example, they may prove the employee was paid a salary), but not another part of the test (for example, that the employee was responsible for hiring and firing employees).  

Don't be fooled into thinking that you are not entitled to overtime merely because you employer says that you are exempt.    Your employer's classification system has little to do with whether you are actually exempt from overtime.

Overtime wage claims and exemption qualifications are complicated. Due to the statute of limitations, the longer you delay consulting with a wage claim attorney, the more compensation you risk losing.

At Kennedy Hodges, L.L.P., we gladly provide a free consultation at our Houston, Texas office to those who believe their employers have withheld overtime pay. Please contact our wage claim attorneys today and obtain the money you rightfully deserve for an honest day's work.