Exempt/Non-exempt issues

[allfiredup]

I'm in Georgia-

I work for a small company (17 employees). We're all "exempt" salaried employees. We work between 50-60 hours per week at least three weeks out of the month with perhaps one 40 hour week per month.

The office manager is incredibly petty and tracks our time on a daily basis. When we miss an hour for an appointment, she insists we "make it up" during that week. Even if it is for sickness or a doctor appointment, we are supposed to make it up. She will also dock our pay for half days if we leave mid-day for something (sick, personal, etc.).

It is my understanding that you can't treat exempt employees this way. We're paid to do our job, not work X amount of hours. We certainly aren't compensated additionally for working over 40 hours. According to my understanding of the law (FLSA), if you treat exempt employees this way you technically have to start paying them as non-exempt employees (overtime and all).

Are the laws/rules concerning exempt employees enforceable and if so, who can I notify? Would it be the state DOL or ?

Thanks!

 

[pattytx]

You can start with the Georgia DOL, but they will probably refer you to the federal DOL. Georgia defaults to federal law for nearly all wage and hour issues, and has very weak, if not nonexistent, enforceability responsibility.

You are interpreting the laws correctly. I am assuming, of course, that you are correctly classified as an exempt employee in the first place. Good luck.