Did you work a long shift or pile up extra hours during a recent pay period only to find little change in your paycheck? It happens more frequently than many people expect.
California has some of the strongest legal rights and protections for workers, including when it comes to overtime pay. But that doesn’t stop employers across the state from trying to cut corners and take money out of employees’ pockets.
Here is what you need to know: State law requires employers to pay many employees time-and-a-half rates for hours worked beyond eight hours in a single workday or 40 hours in a single workweek. Employers routinely try to avoid paying overtime by illegally slashing hours on timecards or simply paying straight-time rates for overtime work.
The California wage and hour attorneys at Justice Law Corporation help working people across the state fight back to protect their rights and ensure they are fully paid. We are seasoned attorneys who have dedicated our careers to assisting people in wage and hour, discrimination, and other cases.
Here is how to tell if you are owed overtime pay and what to do if you are not getting it.
California’s Overtime Pay Rule
Federal law requires employers nationwide to pay many workers 1.5 times their normal rate for all hours worked beyond 40 in a given workweek. In California, the state overtime law applies to a larger group of employees and requires more extra pay in some situations.
These are the current overtime rates:
- 1.5x the regular rate for hours worked beyond eight and up to 12 in a single workday
- 1.5x the regular rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a single workweek
- 2x the regular rate for hours worked beyond 12 in a single workday
- 1.5x the regular rate for the first eight hours on the seventh consecutive day worked in a workweek
- 2x the regular rate for hours beyond eight on the seventh consecutive day
A single longer shift can trigger overtime pay, even if your total hours for the workweek are less than 40. For example, if you work a 10-hour day and then take three days off, you are still owed two hours of overtime pay at the higher rate for the one shift you worked.
Overtime Exemptions
The overtime pay requirements do not apply to all employees. Instead, state law provides certain exemptions. Exempt employees are not required to be paid higher rates for overtime work.
Among the most common is the “white collar” exemption for executive, administrative, and professional employees. To be exempt, an employee must:
- Perform primary duties that are “executive, administrative or professional” and
- Be paid a salary of at least a minimum amount ($70,304)
Job title alone does not determine exempt status. An employer cannot sidestep overtime pay simply by calling you a “manager” if your actual day-to-day duties and pay do not meet the legal test.
Other, separate exemptions cover computer software professionals and outside salespeople, as well as commissioned employees in specific industries and workers covered by certain collective bargaining agreements that provide their own pay structures.
How Employers Break the Overtime Law
All kinds of employers violate overtime requirements, whether they are purposely trying to rip off their employees or simply do not understand their responsibilities.
Misclassified as Exempt
Our California wage and hour attorneys frequently see cases in which employees are wrongly classified as exempt under the white collar exemption. The exemption covers only workers who meet the pay threshold and job duties test. For instance, an employee paid $95,000 per year may still be eligible for overtime pay if their work does not primarily entail executive, administrative, or professional duties.
Misclassified as Independent Contractor
Employers also too often shortchange workers by misclassifying them as independent contractors rather than employees. Contractors are treated as self-employed entrepreneurs under federal and state laws. They are not covered by minimum wage and overtime pay requirements and are not entitled to workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance benefits.
California strictly limits contractor classification to a narrow group of workers, however, and requires that most workers be treated as employees. California’s independent contractor law is among the strictest in the country. Under the ABC test, a worker is presumed to be an employee unless the hiring company can show all three of the following: the worker is free from the company’s control over how the work is done; the work falls outside the company’s usual course of business; and the worker is independently established in that trade or occupation. All three must be satisfied, and failing even one means the worker is an employee entitled to overtime and other protections.
Averaging Hours
Employers are banned from averaging workers’ hours across pay periods or workweeks to avoid paying overtime.
Some employers can claim a “4/10” schedule, however, which eliminates daily overtime pay requirements through arrangements in which employees work four 10-hour days per week. This applies only to schedules approved by at least two-thirds of employees in a clearly defined work unit and filed with the state. An employer cannot merely announce that it is adopting a 4/10 schedule.
Think You are Owed Overtime? Here is What to Do
You have the right to take action if you believe you are owed unpaid overtime. Here is how to start.
- Track your actual hours worked: not just your scheduled shifts. Keep your own log if you do not trust your employer’s timekeeping.
- Check your exemption status against the duties test and salary threshold, not just your job title.
- Look for daily overtime. Many violations happen because employers only calculate overtime weekly and never check for hours beyond eight in a single day.
It is also important to seek the advice of an experienced employment attorney. A lawyer can help you determine whether you were illegally underpaid and pursue a claim for unpaid wages and other damages. An attorney can also help you decide whether to pursue a class action on your behalf and on behalf of coworkers who have been similarly ripped off.
Our California Wage and Hour Attorneys Can Help
If you believe you are being shortchanged on the job, whether by being underpaid or by unfair terms and conditions, you do not need to go it alone. A California wage and hour attorney at Justice Law Corporation can help you evaluate your claim and take action.
Our office is conveniently located in Pasadena. Call (818) 230-7502 to schedule a free consultation with a California wage and hour attorney.
