Anyone who’s worked as an employment lawyer knows that overtime violations are far more common than you might expect. California’s laws on what constitutes overtime, and how much employees need to be paid for overtime, are very clear, but still employers attempt to underpay their employees after making them work extra hours.
A recent change in minimum wage affected employees in South Bay and the rest of the state. In January of this year, the state legislature passed a measure increasing California’s minimum wage to $10 an hour. This affected overtime policies as set by the Fair Labor Standards Act, which calculates overtime as a percentage of your hourly wage.
According to the act, you qualify for overtime if:
- You have worked more than 8 hours in one 24-hour period, or
- You have worked more than 40 hours in one work week, or
- You have worked 7 consecutive days
Overtime is 1.5 times your normal hourly rate, so if you are working for minimum wage in California, you should be receiving $15 per hour for every hour you work overtime (or every hour you work on your seventh consecutive day at your job). There are certain jobs that are exempt from overtime, but if your boss claims that your position is exempt, don’t take it on faith—find another way to confirm this.
If you work in South Bay and believe you may be owed overtime pay from your employer, contact the employment lawyers at Kirtland & Packard, LLP. We’ll give you a free initial consultation to look over the facts of your case and help you decide if you want to pursue legal action to regain wages. To schedule your free consultation, use this website or call 310-536-1000.