Common Tactics Employers Use to Avoid Paying Overtime

Overtime Lawyer

Non-exempt employees who work over 40 hours in a single week are entitled to overtime pay, which is 1.5 your normal rate. Unfortunately, however, some employers do not pay their workers what they owe them. Here are some of the common tactics employers use to avoid paying their workers overtime.

Misclassification

As mentioned above, only non-exempt employees have to get paid overtime for working over 40 hours in one week. However, certain occupations, like ambulance drivers, taxi drivers, actors, agricultural workers and personal assistants, do not typically qualify for overtime pay. Managers and executives may also be exempt from overtime pay. Sometimes employers misclassify employees on purpose to get out of paying them overtime.

Check Splitting

Check splitting occurs when employers divide shifts you have worked into multiple, smaller shifts. This makes it look like you did not work overtime, so you are not owed extra money. For instance, let’s say that you worked 10 hours in one day. This means that you must be paid 8 hours of regular pay and 2 hours of overtime pay. However, your employer changed your timesheet to make it seem like you worked two separate shifts. This is completely illegal.

Requiring Employees to Work off the Clock

Unfortunately, this is another common tactic some employers use to avoid paying their workers overtime. They may require employees to perform preparatory work before their shift, like cleaning, and not pay them overtime for it.

Removing Hours from Timesheets

Sometimes employers will even remove legitimate overtime hours from your timesheet. They may do this just before the pay period ends, so you might not know your hours were changed until you receive your deposit. Employers may hope that you do not notice that you did not receive overtime pay.

What to Do If You Haven’t Been Paid Overtime

If your employer has not paid you overtime that you have earned, you have legal recourse. Do not let your employer get away with not paying you what you are owed. It is important to discuss your situation with an overtime lawyer Chicago, IL residents entrust to provide accurate advice and an exceptional level of service to clients, like one from Disparti Law Group, as soon as possible. A lawyer can look into your case and advise you of the next steps to take. He or she may be able to help you obtain the money you have earned.