Must All Workers Be Paid Extra for Time Worked beyond Certain Hours?
Your work is your livelihood—the way you provide for your needs and the needs of those you love. You want to be treated fairly, to be compensated fully for your efforts. Unfortunately, many employers will try to squeeze extra time from you without paying you for it. In many instances, that’s against the law.
When Is a Worker in Texas Entitled to Overtime Pay?
The payment of overtime may be governed at both the federal and state levels. In Texas, though, there is no state law governing overtime pay. It all falls under the provisions of federal labor law.
The federal rules regarding overtime are found in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which requires that qualified workers be paid an overtime rate of not less than one and half times their regular hourly wage for any time worked beyond 40 hours in a given work week, unless they are exempt employees. That does not mean, though, that the federal law sets a limit on the number of hours a person may work. While there are legal restrictions on the number of hours persons under the age of 16 can work in a week, there are no such limits on anyone 16 and older. Furthermore, hours worked on holiday or weekends do not automatically qualify as overtime, unless the worker has already put in 40 hours.
What Is a Work Week?
Under federal law, an employee’s work week is fixed, but need not be a calendar week. However, it cannot change from week to week or at the whim of an employer. While different employees may have different work weeks, a given employee’s eligibility for overtime pay must consistently be based on the same 168-hour period over seven consecutive days. Employers must include any compensation for overtime with an employee’s regular pay for the week in which overtime was earned. Additionally, an employer cannot deny overtime for one week by having an employee work less the following week.
What Employees Are Eligible for Overtime and What Employees Are Exempt?
In Texas, a person will not be disqualified from eligibility for overtime based entirely on the type of work they do or on the title they hold. Instead, eligibility is based on income. Anyone who works in an outside sales, administrative, executive, professional or computer-related job will not qualify for overtime pay if he or she earns in excess of $684 per week or $35,568 per year.
Contact the Experienced Employment Attorneys at Bailey & Galyen
At the law office of Bailey & Galyen, we know the importance of getting full pay for a full day’s work. We also understand that many employers will try to take advantage of workers, requiring that they work extra hours without adequate compensation. We are committed to protecting the rights of Texas workers to overtime, when appropriate. We offer a free initial consultation to every client. To speak with a knowledgeable and aggressive employment lawyer, Contact us by e-mail or 844-402-2992 call our offices at one of the convenient locations listed below. We will take your call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
