Tennessee Overtime Cases on the Rise

Over the past year our office has pursued more overtime cases than ever before. I am not sure if people are just becoming more aware of their rights or if more employers are trying to increase profits by denying employees the overtime they have earned.

As most people know, if you are eligible for overtime you are entitled to be paid one and 1/2 times your normal pay rate for all time worked over 40 hours in one week. There are some common scams that we are seeing the employers use to avoid paying overtime. Here is one we see often:

Giving the employee an empty management title and paying a salary. Sometimes an employer will give an employee a bogus title such as manager or supervisor. This is done so the employer can pay a specific salary each week no matter how many hours are worked. To determine if this is a scam or legitimate it is important to look not at the title but what the work duties. In other words, if you are called a manager but do not have any management type powers you may be entitled to overtime pay. Common questions to ask are: Do you have the right to set schedules? Do you have the power to hire and fire? Do you supervise employees beneath you? If the answer is no then you may be entitled to back pay and overtime.

If you have questions about wage and hour, overtime or other employment law issues please feel free to contact our Tennessee Law Office.