Monday, November 12, 2012

Things to Know About Labor and Wages

A wage/overtime attorney can help you if you have disputes concerning your pay and your overtime. Before you refer your case to these lawyers, however, you have got to know the basics about the laws covering labor and wage pay. You need to know that so you can decide for yourself if you have a strong case or not.
If you remain ignorant about these matters then you might not know when your rights are being violated and you might just go on working under the same conditions when you do not have to. Knowledge can empower you in this case. When you know that you are right and that you have been taken advantage of, then you can fight with the help of the right wage/overtime attorney to back you up.
Fair Labour Standards Act- Employees are given protection and guarantees with the Fair Labor Standards Act or FLSA, which is the law concerning the wages, overtime pay and wnrking hours of an employee. Under this law an employee should be paid for overtime once he works for more than 40 hours per week. This law is applicable to most employees. If you are one of the following then this law covers you:
- You are an hourly employee.
- You are an employee whose pay is based on commission or bonuses.
- You are receiving a regular salary.
Those categories would cover most -- if not all -- workers.
The Minimum Wage- An employee is guaranteed that he would be paid no less than the minimum wage. That minimum wage has been determined by the government as the least amount that a person must have (in an hourly wage) in order to live a 'normal' life. There are certain cases where the minimum wage would not apply and these are:
- When an employee is still in training. The government is allowed to pay him something lower than the minimum, provided that they meet criteria.
- Employees who receive tips from the customers and clients are allowed to be paid less than the minimum as long as their tips would likely reach a certain amount.
Overtime- Overtime is paid when a worker works for more than forty hours each week. The rate for overtime pay is 1.5 times higher than that of regular pay. It is computed for each hour over the regular 40 hours a day. There are certain types of employees who are not required to be paid overtime if their salary already includes some form of compensation in exchange for it. These employees include doctors and executives who have irregular hours. Government employees, such as fire-fighters and police officers, also have other rules for overtime pay.
Getting an Attorney- In cases where your employer has failed to pay you overtime you will need an attorney to help you out. They will be the one to tell you if you have a case under the Fair Labor Standards Act. There are many lawyers who specialize in this field of law. You can even conduct a search for wage/overtime attorney online.

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