No overtime before Fridays at 5pm in NC?

[EagleAngel]

What is the name of your state? NC

My husband recently began working at a moving company's storage warehouse as an hourly employee. He doesn't go into the field (i.e. move furniture at homes/companies) but unloads trucks at the warehouse for long-term storage. He is being told by his employer that he only qualifies for overtime after 5pm on Fridays because they are a moving company. I can't find anything that states this. Everything I've found says that employees are to receive time and a half after 40 hours in a work week. I haven't seen any mention of certain industries being exempt from this rule. Is his employer right? Isn't overtime eligibilty based on job duties, not industry? He's getting screwed because he's been working more than 40 hours a week but getting off before 5pm on Fridays. The whole company sounds fishy to me, so I'm trying to convince him to look elsewhere. Hopefully what I learn here will give me an argument. Thanks.

[fairisfair]

The only overtime exemption (for hours in excess of 40) that I was able to find for the state of North Carolina pertains to agricultural workers only. Others better versed in your states laws will be along.

[cbg]

I just want to clarify something.

Is he actually WORKING over 40 hours in a week? Or is he being sent home early on Fridays even though he's scheduled for additional time to PREVENT his working over 40 hours a week?

[EagleAngel]

He's working over 40 hours in a week and being sent home before 5pm on Friday. For example, he'll work from 7:00am to 5:30pm with a 30 min lunch M-Th, that's 40 hours, then from 6:30am to 5pm with a 30 min lunch on Friday. So even though that's 50 hours he doesn't get 10 hours at time and a half.

[EagleAngel]

I forgot to answer the being sent home part; technically he's sent home everyday. They don't have set schedules so to say. His hours are set daily. At the end of each day he's told when to report to work the next day. And each day he's told when he can leave. He's been there for about four weeks, and so far he's always sent home before 5pm on Friday. So it's like they're telling him this is the policy and they always conveniently run out of work and send him home before 5pm on Fridays. But it's not uncommon for him to work beyond 5pm M-Th.

[fairisfair]

I can almost see how they might be getting away with it if he was out in the field actually moving people, but since you said that he works in the warehouse, I would contact the DOL for NC.

1-800-NC-LABOR

[pattytx]

Yep, me too. My first thought was that the employer was how the employer was defining the "work week". Just for curiosity's sake, what day/time DOES the employer specify as the beginning of the work week?

[EagleAngel]

The work week begins on Monday. There's no specific time on Mondays that I'm aware of since he may go in at 6am on one Monday and 7am the next.

[cbg]

I don't think that's quite what Patty is looking for. Every employer has, or should have, a defined "work week" which is separate from the employee's scheduled work week. For example, employer ABC may have a work week that is from 12:01 a.m. on Sunday to 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. This makes it possible to determine at what point the new week begins. So suppose an employee working for employer ABC worked 8 hours a day, Monday through Friday, and then was asked to come in and work 5 hours a day Saturday and Sunday. The 5 hours on Saturday would be overtime. The five hours on Sunday would belong to the new work week. (However, if the employee worked his regular 8 hours a day Monday-Friday schedule, the Sunday hours would put him into overtime for that week ).

So it's not his schedule she needs, it's what the employer has defined as the seven-day work week.

[EagleAngel]

His work week is 12:01am Monday thru 11:59pm Sunday. He's definitely getting more than 40 hours in a work week but not working after 5pm on Friday.

[Gadfly]

I'm still not sure from what you are saying if he is actually working over 40 hours, or getting off early and maybe just not making home when you think he should.

[EagleAngel]

Maybe an example of how he's worked will explain it better. Each day he's taking a thiry minute unpaid lunch and the work-week is defined as Monday thru Sunday.

Monday - 7:00am - 5:30pm = 10 hours
Tuesday - 6:30am - 5:30pm = 10.5 hours
Wednesday - 7:00am - 7:30pm = 12 hours
Thursday - 7:00am - 5:30pm = 10 hours
Friday - 6:30am - 5:00pm = 10 hours
Saturday - off
Sunday - off

Total hours for work week = 52.5.

His pay is calculated as 52.5 hours at his hourly rate. He is not getting 40 hours at his hourly rate and 12.5 hours at 1.5 times his hourly rate. I fully trust my husband and know that he's not lying. I see his pay stubs.

[cbg]

Your husband needs to file a complaint with the state Department of Labor.

[EagleAngel]

Now that I'm not the only one thinking he's being taken for a ride my husband will hopefully call the DOL.