In some cases, Californian employers run companies with misleading knowledge about California overtime laws. For example, if the positions of their employees are “Managers” or “Supervisors,” or if they are salaried employees rather than hourly employees, then they are considered exempt employees and they are not subject to the California overtime law.
However, most employers are required to pay overtime to at least some of their employees with the exception of high paying positions such as executive, administrative, and professional employees. To put it simply, only those who are in a position to exert enormous influence in the company, or who have over 50% of their work in charge of overseeing their employees, are exempt from overtime pay. In other cases, a careful examination of the actual work is carried out and the labor commissioner or the court decides on a case-by-case basis.
In addition, even if employees are paid on a salary basis for that reason, the employees covered by the overtime law must receive overtime pay. If you did not receive overtime pay because of your employer’s violations, you may be able to claim overtime pay that you have not received for at least three years and up to four years.
Employers require to pay employees at least the minimum wage for all hours worked and overtime pay at a rate of 1.5 times the employee’s regular rate of pay for hours worked 8 in a day or 40 in a workweek. In both cases, employers are legally obligated to pay overtime pay, whether the employees have worked according to their employer’s needs, or have worked voluntarily without prior permission from their employer. In addition, no employer-employee agreement can avoid the overtime pay.
Employees can accuse their employers through the National Labor Relations Board or the court. We recommend that you talk to a labor law attorney about the differences between the two procedures. When they get back overtime benefits through the charge, they may also claim Punitive Damage, attorney’s fees, and other penalties as set forth in the California Labor Code.
