Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
(OP)
A post in the Language/Grammar forum reminded me of a conflict that is happening in my area - south Louisiana.
Last week, my office (say, Company A) was out of power and we were instructed to stay home due to a minor wind storm. ;)
Company B was out of power until Tuesday night and sent out an email (at 9:00pm) to its employees to show up Wednesday. Since 90% of the employees were out of power and they couldn't get email (who would expect one from work at 9:00pm any way?), most didn't show up until Thursday.
Company C was out of power all week as well.
Now, after Katrina, most companies did not give any benefits to their employees - the employees had to use vacation time for the time the office was closed. Well, times have changed. Company B paid for two days (Monday was the Labor Day holiday). Company C was incredibly generous and paid for the entire week. Company A is giving vacation hours equivalent to 65% of the time off (35% comes out of our vacation time).
The question came up as to whether the companies should "charge" us for time when the office is closed and inaccessible. The argument was made that the Wal-Mart down the street has non-exempt employees and they only get paid for the hours they work. Fair enough. But does exempt status require the companies to pay us for the full time the office was unavailable? Is there a law in the books stating this?
Last week, my office (say, Company A) was out of power and we were instructed to stay home due to a minor wind storm. ;)
Company B was out of power until Tuesday night and sent out an email (at 9:00pm) to its employees to show up Wednesday. Since 90% of the employees were out of power and they couldn't get email (who would expect one from work at 9:00pm any way?), most didn't show up until Thursday.
Company C was out of power all week as well.
Now, after Katrina, most companies did not give any benefits to their employees - the employees had to use vacation time for the time the office was closed. Well, times have changed. Company B paid for two days (Monday was the Labor Day holiday). Company C was incredibly generous and paid for the entire week. Company A is giving vacation hours equivalent to 65% of the time off (35% comes out of our vacation time).
The question came up as to whether the companies should "charge" us for time when the office is closed and inaccessible. The argument was made that the Wal-Mart down the street has non-exempt employees and they only get paid for the hours they work. Fair enough. But does exempt status require the companies to pay us for the full time the office was unavailable? Is there a law in the books stating this?
If you "heard" it on the internet, it's guilty until proven innocent. - DCS





RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
Again, this is only my understanding...which, given the fact that my mind is mush today, could mean absolutely bubkis.
Jeff Mirisola, CSWP, Certified DriveWorks AE
http://designsmarter.typepad.com/jeffs_blog
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
We were placed in that situation during the riots, and most people were given phone calls to not come it, and had to make it back up as vacation or working the Friday after Thanksgiving. The few that missed the phone call, or knew better, that showed up, were charged to overhead and were paid.
TTFN
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RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
I believe that the employer can deduct unworked wages from accumulated vacation, but still must pay for the entire week, as long as work was performed during that week, even if vacation has not been accrued.
When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty. - Thomas Jefferson
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
http://
Edward L. Klein
Pipe Stress Engineer
Houston, Texas
"All the world is a Spring"
All opinions expressed here are my own and not my company's.
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
I and several others (engineers, PMs, etc.) at my company are contract employees through Aerotek.
Today we got a few bombshells dropped on us, the most important being the following: all engineers, project managers and construction coordinators are now considered exempt from receiving time and a half pay on overtime.
The important thing to note here is that we are all paid on an hourly rate (i.e. we are not salaried). According to my reading of the Fair Labor Standards Act, we cannot be exempt unless we are paid on a salary basis. Am I correct?
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
I had to read & sign the contract etc before I was allowed to work through Aerotek, I assume the same applied to you.
KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
It's not a matter of whether or not we're getting paid - we will, at base rate - it's that we will no longer be paid time and a half. The contract is irrelevant for two reasons:
1) You can't sign away your rights when it comes to labor laws.
2) They're sending out new contracts in a couple of weeks that presumably we'll have to sign to continue employment, so the current contract will not be applicable for much longer.
(2) actually brings up another sticking point: we were told that the new rules will be in effect Monday, even though we're not signing the new contract until a couple of weeks from now. I'm not entirely sure how this is legal either. The only explanation that we were given is that our contracts are in fact "agreements" and not actual "contracts." What that means in legal terms is beyond my current knowledge base.
whyun: The highly-compensated worker exemption does not apply here. Most of us are not making even close to that much. Even for the one or two employees making that much, the exemption still does not apply because they are not being paid on a salary basis. The highly-compensated worker exemption applies to salaried employees that meet some, but not all, of the criteria of the executive, administrative or professional worker exemptions.
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
I would go find a hungry labor lawyer. See: htt
TTFN
FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
If you are working for Aerotek on an hourly basis, you are non-exempt, and should be paid at 1.5 times your rate.
Unless your (Noctone) "Electrical" work falls under the computer related exemptions (not likely based on your brief post): http://ww
RE: Exempt vs. Non-Exempt and Money...
It will be interesting to see how the week plays out, I sent an email on Friday to the account manager at Aerotek telling him that what they are trying to do is illegal and that I had confirmed as such with the Department of Labor.
Interestingly enough, another employee who spoke up during the meeting at which the new terms were announced has possibly been seeing some repercussions. He moved here from Texas and has always been receiving his paycheck here at the office. Last week was his first paycheck after the meeting, and wouldn't you know it they sent his paycheck down to Texas. Meanwhile, they won't pay him per diem because they say that he doesn't live in Texas. Hmmmmmm.