Practice Areas
Wage Claims / OvertimeRukin Hyland Doria & Tindall California’s labor laws are among the most protective in the nation, and the obligations employers owe to their employees are detailed and complex. Just by way of example, employees are entitled to overtime pay after working eight hours per day or forty hours per week; double-time pay after twelve hours per day or eight hours on the seventh work day; and regular meal and rest breaks. In today’s competitive business climate, some employers may deny workers these employment rights and benefits in order to maximize corporate profits. The employment law attorneys at Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall represent employees in connection with the entire spectrum of state and federal wage and hour claims, including claims for:
Contact Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall, for a consultation. Misclassification Claims Under California and federal law, employees are generally entitled to overtime pay unless they qualify as exempt from overtime under a few narrow exemptions for “white collar” employees and commissioned salespersons. The so-called “white collar” exemptions only apply to certain managerial, administrative, and professional employees who exercise substantial discretion and independent judgment in the performance of their jobs. But employers often mistakenly or intentionally treat certain categories of employees as exempt from overtime pay, when in fact they should be classified as hourly workers entitled to overtime. For example, a major drugstore chain recently settled claims that it had misclassified its northern California “managers” and “assistant sales managers” as exempt from overtime when, in fact, these managers spent most of their time performing the same work as the hourly employees they supervised. “Off-The-Clock” Work Sometimes, an employer may properly classify its workers as entitled to overtime, but unlawfully direct or permit those workers to work unreported overtime “off-the-clock.” For example, in a highly publicized case involving a “big box” retailer, Court documents revealed that hourly employees had been assigned a certain number of duties that had to be completed within their 8-hour shift. If the duties could not be completed in that period, employees were told that they had to finish on their own time. Reimbursement for Business Expenses California law requires employers to reimburse employees for all expenses the employees incur in the performance of their duties. Thus, employers must reimburse employees for such things as cell phone charges and automobile expenses (excluding normal commute expenses), when those expenses are reasonably incurred. Employer policies which do not permit employees to recover these expenses are unlawful. We Have Recovered Millions of Dollars in Unpaid Wages The California wage claim lawyers of Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall, have recovered many millions of dollars in unpaid wages on behalf of California employees in class action litigation. We have also successfully resolved many San Francisco wage / overtime claims for individual employees. If you believe that your employer’s pay or labor practices do not comply with the law, contact an attorney at Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall, for a free consultation. If you would like more information about employment law, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions and see our Media Center Rukin Hyland Doria & Tindall LLP |
