YOUNGSTOWN OVERTIME EXEMPTIONS & MISCLASSIFICATIONS ATTORNEY

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), as well as state laws in Ohio, employees who work over 40 hours in a given week are entitled to overtime pay at a rate of 1.5 times their regular wage for any hours worked beyond 40. While this is true for most employees, numerous employees are exempt from this requirement based on their classification and job duties. While this may be legally valid in many cases, sometimes, employers intentionally misclassify employees for the purpose of saving money and not having to pay them overtime wages. To learn more and ask any questions, please call our Youngstown overtime exemptions and misclassifications attorneys directly today.

Who Is Exempt from Overtime Pay?

Certain categories of employees are exempt from overtime pay. These include:

• Executive, administrative, and professional employees;
• Farmworkers and agricultural employees;
• Computer systems analysts, computer programmers, and software engineers who make at least $27.63/hour;
• Most seasonal and recreational employees; and
• Independent contractors.

The above list is not inclusive. If you are being denied overtime pay, you may be exempt under federal law. Talk to an employment attorney to get a better understanding of your rights.

Employer Misclassifications and Wrongfully Denied Overtime Pay

While some employers legally do not have to pay overtime pay based on the exemptions listed above, it is not uncommon for an employer to intentionally or unintentionally misclassify an employee, and thereby escape the duty of having to pay overtime. This is especially common with independent contractors and executive, administrative, and professional employees.

Criteria for an independent contractor

 

An employer may hire someone as an “independent contractor” in order to avoid paying many benefits, including overtime time. However, just because an employee is a contract employee does not mean they are an independent contractor. Some of the things to think about when determining whether or not you are an independent contractor, regardless of whether you filled out a W-9, include:

• Are you able to set your own hours and your own rate of compensation?
• Does the company you work for have the ability to control what you do for your job?
• Are business aspects of the job controlled by your employer, such as how and when you are paid?

If you are not making decisions for yourself about your work, payment, creative control, etc., then chances are you are an employee, not an independent contractor.

Executive, administrative, and professional employees

To qualify as an employee in one of these three categories, you must make a certain base-level salary per week and satisfy certain tests. For example, to meet the requirements as an administrative employee, you must exercise discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance as part of your primary job duties.

Get Help from Our Youngstown Overtime Exemptions & Misclassifications Attorney

To learn more about overtime exemptions and misclassifications, call our Youngstown employment attorneys directly today. We offer free consultations and can work on your case on a contingency fee basis. Call us today to get the legal support you need when your rights as an employee are being breached.