For years, California and the federal government have provided Californian workers with strong employees’ rights laws. This includes wage and overtime laws. These laws were designed to protect workers from employers literally working them to death for pennies. Now, employees are guaranteed a minimum wage, rest and break rights, and overtime pay for when they work beyond 40 hours in a week. There are, however, exceptions to these laws.
Some Employees are Exempt from Wage and Overtime Laws
Exempt employees are workers who an employer does not have to provide minimum wage, overtime, or rest breaks. In other words, they are exempt from the legal obligations of wage and overtime laws. A sad, but predictable side-effect of having this loophole to wage and overtime laws is that some employers choose to abuse it. Skirting these laws allows them to get more work out of their employees while paying them less than they would otherwise get.
It is therefore really important to understand what qualifies an employee exempt. First, there are specific roles that the employee must play within the workplace, including “executive”, “administrative”, and “professional” employees. These are people who possess special skills, perform duties that are critical to the employer, and have a high level of autonomy. Next, an employee’s job duties must fall within one of these categories and they employee must spend at least half of their work time engaging in the activities that render them exempt. And finally, an employer must pay exempt employees a salary, which should be at least double California’s minimum wage.
Terminix Has Misclassified Employees Before
If you work for the international pest control company Terminix, it may interest you to know that your employer settled an overtime lawsuit for $1.5 million in 2011—the not so distant past. In that lawsuit, the company misclassified Termite Inspectors as exempt employees, and therefore failed to pay them overtime. Terminix ended up having to pay 1,222 misclassified employees their overtime pay and damages, and also ended up correcting its error and reclassify those employees as non-exempt. If you have worked as a Pest Control Technician for the company in the last three years, and receive a salary instead of wages and overtime, you need to contact an attorney to make sure that history isn’t repeating itself.
Moss Bollinger Stands Up For Employees
If you have been a Technician for Terminix in the last three years, it is worth your while to contact Moss Bollinger law firm. We are an employee rights firm who passionately advocates against employers that violate the law. You have strong legal rights in this state and we want to fight to protect them. If Terminix has violated your wage and overtime rights, you may be entitled to damages. Our office works on a contingency basis and does not collect any up front fees. Contact Moss Bollinger at } for a free consultation or submit our online form.