Overtime Lawyer Blog

Summer isn’t yet in full swing, but it is already hot here in Atlanta. One of the great summer jobs is lifeguarding, but it is employment that brings with it potential hazards, especially for people under the age of 18.

Lifeguards who are minors have their own classification under the Youth Employment provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The Department of Labor defines the duties of a lifeguard as rescuing swimmers in danger of drowning, monitoring activities at a swimming pool to prevent accidents, teaching water safety, and providing assistance to patrons. Lifeguards may also help to maintain order and cleanliness in the pool and pool areas, give swimming instructions, conduct or officiate at swimming meets, and administer first aid. Other ancillary duties may include checking towels in and out, and perhaps working with food.

Here are some highlights of restrictions on minors working in pool areas or water parks:

Continue reading "Minor Lifeguards and the FLSA" »

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Posted In: Minimum Wage , Minors

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Two major amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act, one each by a Republican and a Democrat, could profoundly change several FLSA standards for overtime and minimum wages if and when they are passed into law.

The first, introduced in February by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R. WA), would allow comp time in the private sector. The second, introduced last week by Rep. Donna Edwards (D-MD), raises the minimum wage for restaurant workers. Both bills are fairly controversial, but for different reasons.

Continue reading "Pending FLSA Legislation" »

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Posted In: Comp Time , Restaurants , Tip Credit

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No matter what, people have to eat. And restaurant employees will always be there to serve them.

There are over 7 million people employed in restaurants in the United States, a large percentage of whom work in fast food establishments. These jobs are often very transient, and the fact is that many fast food workers don’t realize that they have a number of rights under federal employment law.

Most large fast food restaurants are covered under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Any restaurant or fast food business with annual gross sales from one or more establishments that total at least $500,000 are subject to the FLSA.

Continue reading "Fast Food and Restaurant Workers and the FLSA" »

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Posted In: Fast Food , Minimum Wage , Restaurants , Tip Credit

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Farms are now in full swing all across Georgia, the South, and most of the rest of the country, employing thousands, if not millions, of farm workers.

Most seasonal agricultural workers are covered under two separate federal labor laws—the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act. This post will cover the former; and this post covers the latter.

The two laws always need to be read together, as well as in conjunction with state laws, by a qualified employment lawyer, to determine the rights of any agricultural workers in this very complex area.

Continue reading "Agricultural Workers Under the FLSA" »

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Posted In: Agricultural Workers

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One of the notable parts of the modern world is that we seem to be constantly dealing with customer service representatives-- in trying to buy something over the phone, pay or adjust a bill, trying to get your computer fixed, trying to book a flight, or just trying to get a little information on a company.

It seems like there are call centers, and CSR’s, everywhere in and around Atlanta, and there may be more coming, especially now that Delta has closed its India call centers.

The Fair Labor Standards Act actually has a separate set of rules for call center workers, who are defined as employees who handle telephone calls for their company or on behalf of a client from a central operating facility.

Continue reading "Call Center Workers and the FLSA" »

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Posted In: Call Center Workers

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With the current state of the automobile industry, and the economy in general, and even in the relatively well- off parts of the Atlanta area, many people who work for car dealers are scrambling around, either trying to figure out if their positions are safe, or what to do if they’ve already lost their jobs.

There are dozens of jobs within a car dealership—from sales associate to mechanic to receptionist, and the size and types of dealerships varies widely.

Which of these jobs, and what kind of dealerships, if any, are covered by the FLSA?

Continue reading "Are Automobile Dealer Employees Covered under the FLSA?" »

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Posted In: Automobile Dealerships

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As if preschool and daycare workers in the Atlanta area don’t have enough problems on the job, from picking up every communicable bug out there to bites, tantrums, and parents who can be late and unappreciative, they can be among the types of employees who are routinely and illegally denied overtime pay.

A typical work day for a daycare worker can include all kinds of activities that should be a red flag for overtime pay possibilities, including the need to arrive early, stay late, and work through breaks and lunch. Many of these employees are vulnerable enough to employer shenanigans in denying overtime that some patterns have emerged, including….

Continue reading "Daycare Workers Under the FLSA" »

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Posted In: Daycare Workers , Preschool Workers

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Atlanta is replete with people who work in the field of home health care. Home health care workers have a special set of regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

For instance, a home health care worker may or may not be entitled to overtime pay, depending on the circumstances of employment.

First, the definition. A home health care worker is someone who provides home health care services for individuals who (because of age or infirmity) are unable to care for themselves. They may be employed by the household itself, or an agency, or may just freelance.

Continue reading "Classifying Home Health Care Workers" »

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Posted In: Overtime for Professionals

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Most salaried employees don’t get overtime pay. But is the reverse true—does an employer have to pay full salary if the employee isn’t at work? Some deductions from pay will be proper, but some may cause an employee to lose that exempt status and qualify for overtime.

Allowable deductions to your salary, according to a July 2008 Department Of Labor fact sheet, include where an exempt employee: is absent from work for one or more full days for personal reasons other than sickness or disability; for absences of one or more full days due to sickness or disability if the deduction is made in accordance with a plan of providing compensation for salary lost due to illness; to offset amounts employees receive as jury or witness fees, or for military pay; for penalties imposed in good faith for infractions of safety rules of major significance; or for unpaid disciplinary suspensions of one or more full days imposed in good faith for workplace conduct rule infractions. Also...

Continue reading "When Do Salaried Employees Qualify for Overtime Pay?" »

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Posted In: Overtime for Professionals

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Nobody may work harder, and nobody may have more job satisfaction, than a nurse. But with all of those hours put in, do nurses generally qualify for overtime pay, or are they exempted under the FLSA?

The answer to that question may depend on what kind of nurse you are, what your duties are, what your educational background is, and how much money you are paid. A July 2008 advisory letter from the US Department of Labor lays out all of the various considerations in deciding whether or not a nurse should receive overtime.

Continue reading "Overtime for Nurses" »

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Posted In: Overtime for Professionals

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Are reporters entitled to overtime pay? Will they write about it more if they are?

Even with the well- documented decline of print media, there are certainly enough reporters left on the job for this to be an ongoing issue. And reporters facing layoffs will certainly have any number of questions that could be directed to an employment attorney.

The issues are on a fine enough line that each communications media employee’s situation will need to be treated on a case-by-case basis.
In fact, if you have recently been let go by a newspaper or magazine, or are on the edge, and are looking for some legal advice, you may very well run into questions of unpaid overtime, depending on how your job can been classified.

Continue reading "Overtime for Journalists" »

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Posted In: Overtime for Professionals

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In order to know if the time you spend at work might be classified as overtime by the FLSA, you have to know how work time itself is defined. The FLSA language defining what constitutes work itself is vague enough, though, that each situation probably has to be figured out on a case-by-case basis.

For instance, in the 2005 US Supreme Court case of IBP Inc v Alvarez, the Court ruled that the time that employees spend walking to their production area after putting on required work gear is compensable. The time spent waiting to take the work gear off also is compensable. However, the time spent waiting to put the first piece of gear on before starting work is not compensable.

But all of this can be changed under a union or employee contract, if you’re under one, so, as always, make sure you read your employment contract carefully under any and all circumstances.

Continue reading "How Do You Define "Work Time" Anyway?" »

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