Industries With Frequent Overtime Pay Violations
Posted: Wednesday, November 21, 2007
by Dan Getman
Getman Law Office
Most workers are entitled to overtime premium pay under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The basic protection of the law is that a covered employee is entitled to overtime at the rate of time and one-half for all hours worked over 40. The law is riddled with loopholes that allow employers not to pay overtime. However, there are numerous situations where the law is clear, but employers are simply cheating employees out of the pay to which they are entitled. Under the overtime law, employees who are not paid the overtime they are entitled, have a legal claim for TWICE the amount they were shorted. Additionally, an employer who loses such a claim must pay the legal fees and costs of the winning plaintiff (this also allows such cases to be handled on a “contingent fee” basis by law firms handling FLSA cases). Below is a sampling of the industries in which overtime violations are pervasive. Not surprisingly, these industries are the subject of frequent lawsuits. It is important to note that many other people are entitled to overtime in industries which are not listed below. These jobs are only a partial sampling of the industries in which overtime law violations are frequent. And many people are cheated out of the overtime they are due in industries where such violations are not pervasive, but that the employer is simply violating the law.
Satellite Dish/TV Installation Technicians
Satellite TV installation technicians around theMortgage Originators
Mortgage originators (often called "loan officers", "account executives", or other titles) are routinely paid on commission or commission plus draw, or even a salary basis. Mortgage sales staff, who work from call centers are generally not exempt under any FLSA exemption. Even loan officers who are considered to be outside sales staff are frequently not exempt from the FLSA overtime pay requirement. Despite years of back pay lawsuits, this industry continues to fail to abide by its obligation to pay loan officers overtime as the law requires.Car Mechanics
Car mechanics are frequently paid either a salary, job rate, or an hourly rate. There is no overtime exemption for auto mechanics outside of a dealership and so mechanics must be paid time and one half for all hours over forty in a work week. Some auto dealership mechanics may be exempt, however.Health Aides
Health aides who work in private homes may be exempt if they spend more than 20% of their work time doing general household chores. However, home health aides that work in "institutions" generally are not exempt from the time and one half overtime requirement. This requirement is frequently violated. Getman Law Office has successfully handled litigation in the past for home health aides.Drivers of Vehicles under 10,001 Lbs.
On August 10, 2005, Congress changed the overtime law for drivers of vehicles with a Vehicle Gross Weight Rating of 10,001 lbs. or less. Drivers of these vehicles were generally exempt from the federal overtime law prior to August 2005 (if they carried goods across state lines, or if the goods originated out of state), but now these drivers are not exempt and are covered by the federal overtime law. This change in the law will have a very significant impact for Route Delivery Drivers (for example, Newspaper Route Drivers and sales managers who oversee drivers but also handle routes) and repairpersons (those who carry parts that originated out of state). This change in the law is one of the most positive developments in overtime law in the last two decades. It has gone largely un-noticed in the press and by employers, who may continue to believe that drivers of these vehicles are exempt, simply because they are carrying goods which originated out of state.Mechanical/Electrical/Structural Designers-Detailers-Draftsmen
Mechanical/Electrical/Structural Designers-Detailers-Draftsmen, employees who make fabrication drawings from information provided by engineers or other professionals, are generally not exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act overtime requirements. While some employees doing this work are paid overtime, many are not. In some industries, such as the oil and gas industry, many employers pay employees in these positions on a salary basis and do not pay overtime, even though federal law requires overtime pay.Cable Installers
Cable and line installers are frequently treated as independent contractors, even though they work for a single company exclusively, receive pay set by that company, and have no opportunity to increase income other than by working longer hours. Many such installers cannot be legally paid as independent contractors. If installers work more than 40 hours in a week and are not paid overtime premium pay at the rate of time and one half, there may be a valid claim for back pay and an equal amount in liquidated damages. The fact that the company pays such workers as an independent contractor and reports such pay on an IRS Form 1099, does not make this pay practice legal.Call Centers
There is no overtime exemption for call center telephone workers who must be paid time and one half for all hours over forty in a work week.To take an automated on-line questionnaire to determine if you were entitled to overtime pay, go to http://www.getmanlaw.com/questionnaire/
Dan Getman is an attorney with Getman Law Office, see http://getmanlaw.com
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