Employer Lying to me about Overtime Laws

[eternal1krazy]

What is the name of your state: Colorado

Okay so, I began working part time as a Janitor, which very quickly became full time janitorial/maintenance/landscaping/bar-backing. Well, the extra hours were nice up until this morning's incident.

I had heard from an ex-boss there, that the company wasn't fond of overtime at all, so when I realized I would be at 38 hours today, and still had 2 days left in the workweek to work, I brought this up to my supervisor. "Hey, I might need to watch my hours, as i'm just about at 40 and I know you guys don't like overtime." Was my initial statement. My supervisor responded with, "Oh, we don't pay overtime, so it's not really worth working."

At which point I closed my mouth, and walked away, having dealt with the same thing with a past employer.

She quickly realized I would have quite the workload for the next couple of days, and returned to me a little while later with, "Well how many hours did you work last week? Because I know we count them up into 2 weeks, as long as you don't go over 80 hours." Again, I bit my toungue, and said "We'll see" (not sarcastically at all, meant it as i'll look at my hours.)

Now I know this is highly illegal, as I am not an exempt employee (medical/residential care, commisioned employees, sales person, etc...) I really don't want to lose my job ... but am 'NOT' going to work for incorrect pay...

(Sorry for the jumble of stuff btw)


What will be the most correct way of me going about this? I have heard many suggestions, some good while others not so much, ranging from "Clock out at 40 Hours, and return at the begining of the next workweek," "Print out the state/federal law on a sheet of paper, and show it to her," "Simply tell her that you understand your laws, and won't be unlawfully coerced into working for incorrect pay," as well as "Work the O.T. and when you get your paycheck, fuss \)"

I just want to do things right, without being taken advantage of,....


edit: I feel as though, clocking out at my 40 hours tomorrow, taking saturday off, and returning sunday would be the easiest route to take (I am not directly supervised) ... But do not want to get fired for "leaving the workplace"

edit 2: Forgot to add: Thank you for anyone who takes the time to help me with this, as it is very much so stressing me out.

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state: Colorado

Okay so, I began working part time as a Janitor, which very quickly became full time janitorial/maintenance/landscaping/bar-backing. Well, the extra hours were nice up until this morning's incident.

I had heard from an ex-boss there, that the company wasn't fond of overtime at all, so when I realized I would be at 38 hours today, and still had 2 days left in the workweek to work, I brought this up to my supervisor. "Hey, I might need to watch my hours, as i'm just about at 40 and I know you guys don't like overtime." Was my initial statement. My supervisor responded with, "Oh, we don't pay overtime, so it's not really worth working."

At which point I closed my mouth, and walked away, having dealt with the same thing with a past employer.

She quickly realized I would have quite the workload for the next couple of days, and returned to me a little while later with, "Well how many hours did you work last week? Because I know we count them up into 2 weeks, as long as you don't go over 80 hours." Again, I bit my toungue, and said "We'll see" (not sarcastically at all, meant it as i'll look at my hours.)

Now I know this is highly illegal, as I am not an exempt employee (medical/residential care, commisioned employees, sales person, etc...) I really don't want to lose my job ... but am 'NOT' going to work for incorrect pay...

(Sorry for the jumble of stuff btw)


What will be the most correct way of me going about this? I have heard many suggestions, some good while others not so much, ranging from "Clock out at 40 Hours, and return at the begining of the next workweek," "Print out the state/federal law on a sheet of paper, and show it to her," "Simply tell her that you understand your laws, and won't be unlawfully coerced into working for incorrect pay," as well as "Work the O.T. and when you get your paycheck, fuss \)"

I just want to do things right, without being taken advantage of,....


edit: I feel as though, clocking out at my 40 hours tomorrow, taking saturday off, and returning sunday would be the easiest route to take (I am not directly supervised) ... But do not want to get fired for "leaving the workplace"

edit 2: Forgot to add: Thank you for anyone who takes the time to help me with this, as it is very much so stressing me out.

There is just about nothing you can do that won't effect your employment. What you really need to do is work the hours that you are scheduled, and then file a claim with the DOL when they do not pay you correctly. Then if they fire you, you will at least be able to claim retaliation. If they don't fire you they will at least be smart enough to correct your schedule.

 

[eternal1krazy]

What I "want" to do most, is kindly ask her for a short talk. Provide a proper list of exemptions from the 40/week law, and explain that I mean no wrong in asking "Which, if any, of these apply to me?"


edit: The worst part, is there is no schedule ... i'm just supposed to be there everyday apparently. And between setting up/cleaning up after wedding receptions, and working on a broken lawnmower i've accumulated extra hours for the week, there isn't much of a way around it, i'm the 'ONLY' person of my positions.

edit 2:

Exemptions from Overtime
Exemptions from all or part of the overtime requirement may be allowed under the Wage Order for commission sales, the ski industry, and medical transportation. These along with salespersons, parts-persons, and mechanics, who are employed by an automobile dealer are exempt as explained in Section 6 of the Wage Order.

The Following employees are exempt from the overtime provisions of the Wage Order:

Salespersons, parts-persons, and mechanics employed by automobile, truck, or farm implement (retail) dealers: salespersons employed by trailer, aircraft and boat (retail) dealers.
Commission Sales Exemption: sales employees of retail or service industries paid on a commission basis, provided that 50% of their total earnings in a pay period are derived from commission sales, and their regular rate of pay is at least one and one-half times the minimum wage. This exemption is only applicable for employees of retail or service employers who receive in excess of 75% of their annual dollar volume from retail or service sales.
Ski Industry Exemption: employees of the ski industry performing duties directly related to ski area operations for downhill skiing or snow boarding, and those employees engaged in providing food and beverage services at on-mountain locations, are exempt from the forty (40) hour overtime requirement of the Wage Order. The daily overtime requirement of one and one-half the regular rate of pay for all hours worked in excess of twelve (12) in a workday shall apply. This partial overtime exemption does not apply to ski area employees performing duties related to lodging.
Medical Transportation Exemption: employees of the medical transportation industry who are scheduled to work twenty-four (24) hour shifts, are exempt from the twelve (12) hour overtime requirement provided they receive overtime wages for hours worked in excess of forty (40) hours per workweek.
See Advisory Bulletin: Exemptions and Jurisdictional Issues, 30 (I), for more information on exemptions.

 

[Silverplum]

http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CDLE-LaborLaws/CDLE/1248095305395

 

[Just Blue]

http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CDLE-LaborLaws/CDLE/1248095305395

Thank You Silver for providing the link!

 

[TigerD]

What I "want" to do most, is kindly ask her for a short talk. Provide a proper list of exemptions from the 40/week law, and explain that I mean no wrong in asking "Which, if any, of these apply to me?"


edit: The worst part, is there is no schedule ... i'm just supposed to be there everyday apparently. And between setting up/cleaning up after wedding receptions, and working on a broken lawnmower i've accumulated extra hours for the week, there isn't much of a way around it, i'm the 'ONLY' person of my positions.

I'd fire you if you came in my business with that attitude.

LdiJ told you what you should do.

DC

 

[eternal1krazy]

What I "want" to do most, is kindly ask her for a short talk. Provide a proper list of exemptions from the 40/week law, and explain that I mean no wrong in asking "Which, if any, of these apply to me?"

Attitude? LMAO* .... that is MUCH kinder imho, than working specifically to file a lawsuit against you knowing I would win.

I have filed the same lawsuit against a past employer for the EXACT reasons, and won .. I KNOW I am in the right with that.

(The editted part was a response to a previous post, and had nothing to do with me talking with them)

 

[TigerD]

...
I have filed the same lawsuit against a past employer for the EXACT reasons, ...

That alone will keep many employers from considering you. You might want to check your behavior and attitude before you further diminish your prospects in life.

DC

 

[eternal1krazy]

That alone will keep many employers from considering you. You might want to check your behavior and attitude before you further diminish your prospects in life.

DC

It would be illegal for you to explain that to a potential employer when called to verify my (previous) employment status though

That alone will keep many employers from considering you. You might want to check your behavior and attitude before you further diminish your prospects in life.

DC

So after working hundreds of hours of overtime in a year, and not being compensated for it, you would just keep your mouth shut, and continue about your day, just so you could work? I did what was right, and am proud of it, too many people are taken advantage of, and I stood up for myself, and made it out pretty nicely.

 

[Just Blue]

Attitude? LMFAO .... that is MUCH kinder imho, than working specifically to file a lawsuit against you knowing I would win.

I have filed the same lawsuit against a past employer for the EXACT reasons, and won .. I KNOW I am in the right with that.

(The editted part was a response to a previous post, and had nothing to do with me talking with them)

Admin will ban you for language. Edit the LM**O.

 

[Just Blue]

It would be illegal for you to explain that to a potential employer when called to verify my (previous) employment status though

No it is not illegal, why would you think that it is???

 

[LdiJ]

Attitude? LMFAO .... that is MUCH kinder imho, than working specifically to file a lawsuit against you knowing I would win.

I have filed the same lawsuit against a past employer for the EXACT reasons, and won .. I KNOW I am in the right with that.

(The editted part was a response to a previous post, and had nothing to do with me talking with them)

You are right. However, since you apparently don't have a schedule it gets really complicated. You can be fired for working unauthorized overtime. You can be fired for all kinds of other reasons. You can be fired for just having the "kind" conversation with the employer.

Unless your skillset is so important to the employer that they are not willing to lose you that "kind" conversation may be your last day of work.

 

[Just Blue]

You are right. However, since you apparently don't have a schedule it gets really complicated. You can be fired for working unauthorized overtime. You can be fired for all kinds of other reasons. You can be fired for just having the "kind" conversation with the employer.

Unless your skillset is so important to the employer that they are not willing to lose you that "kind" conversation may be your last day of work.

Well...There we go!! DC is correct and hell is freezing over.

 

[eternal1krazy]

Blue Meanie:
Simply put, most employers wouldn't say anything, because why would you want to explain to someone that you had been acting unlawfully and got caught and paid the price. (word of mouth spreads too quickly. Especially if say you ran a restaurant, and were calling another restaurant I previously worked @ where you could boost your business by spreading the word that X restaurant abuses it's employees)

So you would be forced to lie about what happened, which would be defamation (illegal)

 

[LdiJ]

well...there we go!! Dc is correct and hell is freezing over. :d

rotflmao...!!!