Where do employers make the most wage and hour mistakes?

Federal law, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), along with numerous state and local regulations, provide wage and hour regulations employers must follow. However, the laws are constantly updating and evolving, resulting in some fairly common wage and hour mistakes.

One of the leading areas where employers make errors is failing to pay employees the requisite minimum wage.  Although one obvious way this may occur is if an employer pays a worker a flat rate that is under the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour.  Some minimum wage earners may be entitled to more.  Several municipalities around the country have adopted minimum wage laws that pay a higher wage.  However, the majority of minimum wage pay violations occur due to less obvious practices. For example, if your employer doesn’t pay you for all time worked, or requires you to work through lunch breaks, your pay may wind up less than the federal minimum.  It’s a good idea to consult with an experienced wage and hour lawyer if you have questions concerning your rate of pay.

Likewise, these practices may also lead to violations of the overtime pay requirements set forth in the FLSA.  The FLSA requires that non-exempt workers be paid overtime compensation at a rate of one and one-half times their standard rate of pay for all time spent working in excess of 40 hours in any one work week.  If you routinely work through breaks and spend time working “of the clock,” or are otherwise not compensated for all time worked “on the clock,” you may be putting in more than 40 hours, and be entitled to overtime pay.  The failure to pay you overtime pay may be an FLSA violation.

Another related error is misclassifying non-exempt workers as exempt, thereby denying them the rightful opportunity to earn overtime pay to begin with.  If you believe your employer has made any of these common wage and hour mistakes, it’s important to meet with an experienced Atlanta wage and hour lawyer to review your situation.

For more information or to schedule an immediate case evaluation, please contact our knowledgeable Georgia FLSA lawyers at Buckley Bala Wilson Mew LLP for an immediate case evaluation.