Unpaid Overtime

Employers often take advantage of employees by refusing to pay overtime compensation. Under the California Labor Code section 510(a), employers must pay 1½ times the employee’s regular rate if he or she works more than 40 hours per week or more than 8 hours per day; and double the regular rate for work in excess of 12 hours per day.

Some of the most common ways an employer may have taken advantage of you (and thus violating Federal and California State laws) include:

• Requiring you to “waive” your right to overtime pay or to be paid less than the statutory rate
• Misclassifying you as "overtime exempt" and/or designating you as a salaried employee when you should be classified as "non-exempt" or hourly (Ex. paying you as a salaried "manager" or "supervisor" when your job does not entail any management or decision-making duties)
• Having you work "off the clock" before/after your shift or during your lunch break
• Requiring you to arrive early for your shift or to attend work-related functions without paying you
• Not compensating you for travel time during work or otherwise at the employer's direction
• Not compensating you for being “on-call” for the business (this includes requiring you to respond to texts or emails while off duty)
• Not compensating you for time spent donning and doffing integral safety gear and equipment for dangerous jobs

If you suspect that your employer has done any of these things, you should contact an overtime attorney at Workplace Justice Advocates, a Professional Law Corporation, to determine whether you are owed overtime compensation.