Wage and Hour Issues

Employees must be compensated according to wage and hour laws, which cover minimum wages, overtime, and meal and rest breaks. Employer policies must comply with these laws, but there are ways to get around them. For example, employers sometimes classify an employee as salaried, instead of hourly, simply to avoid paying overtime.

In addition, employers often hire workers as independent contractors. This is an ideal way for them to handle short-term or contract work, since they can expand their workforce without having to offer benefits, unemployment insurance, worker’s compensation, or other perks. That’s why the independent contractor classification is often abused, but assessing whether that contractor is actually an employee can be difficult.

Hourly workers are covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act and Connecticut state law. These set mandatory minimum wage requirements, and require “non-exempt,” or hourly, employees to be paid overtime for each hour over 40 they work in a single week. The laws require employers to keep adequate records and prohibit “off-the-clock” work. You have the right to file an action against your employer for unpaid overtime, as well as to seek damages for retaliation if fired for doing it.

If you have any issues around employer wage and hour policies, overtime compensation, or independent contractor classification, please call for a confidential consultation about your situation.