Can a employer require exempt employees to work 40 hours a week?

It’s a common misconception that employers can’t require exempt employees to work a specific schedule or at least 40 hours a week. An employer may, in fact, do so and remain in compliance with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The key is to pay exempt employees their weekly salary without any reduction for quality or quantity of work.

When do non exempt employees get overtime pay?

Our non-exempt employees will all receive overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours in a week. Some of them will actually end up earning more per week than some exempt employees. We would like to address this by offering extra pay to our exempt employees who work extended hours during the busy season.

Can a company view an exempt employee as hourly?

However, if an employer requires an employee to track their hours, accounting might start to view an exempt employee as hourly. If that occurs, an employer would be subject to pay past overtime to that employee.

How much do exempt employees get paid per week?

That section provides that so long as an exempt employee receives a guaranteed salary of at least the minimum weekly salary level (currently $455 per week), providing an extra payment above the minimum guarantee does not jeopardize the employee’s exempt status. There is a caveat however.

What is the minimum hours for an exempt employee?

In an office where company policies state that exempt employees must work a 40-hour work week, an exempt employee is not working 40 hours.

Can an employer pay overtime to an exempt employee?

Therefore, employers are not obligated to pay overtime to an exempt employee. However, an employer may do so without jeopardizing the exempt status. The rule is that as long as the exempt employee is paid on a salary basis, the employer has met its FLSA compensation obligation.

How many hours per week do exempt employees work?

Under the law, employers can compensate exempt employees under certain circumstances without losing the exemption. Employers can set the “normal work week” for an exempt employee, however, at something in excess of 40 hours per week if they so desire.

What are the requirements for an exempt employee?

For an employee to be considered exempt, they must use discretion and independent judgment, at least 50 percent of the time and must earn more than $455 per week. Requirements differ from individual state to individual state, but an example of one of the requirements used to classify an exempt employee is…

What are the rights of an exempt employee?

Rights of exempt vs. non-exempt employees Non-exempt employees have rights under the FLSA, including minimum wage and overtime pay. But exempt employees do not have those rights. The only real “right” that the exempt employee has under FLSA is to be paid their guaranteed minimum salary in any week that they perform some work.

When do you have to pay salary exempt employees?

So even if the employee performs less work than normal, you must still pay them their full salary, as long as the reason for the reduction in work is under the employer’s control. For example, if you simply have no work for the employee to do because business is slow, you still have to pay the entire base salary.

Who are exempt from overtime requirements under FLSA?

The FLSA does not apply to all employees. Under the law, certain categories of workers are generally excluded, or exempted, from the law’s overtime requirements. These workers are referred to as “exempt” employees. What are Exempt Employees? What are Professional Employees? What are Executive Employees? What are Administrative Employees?

The employee must have the authority to hire or fire other employees, or the employee’s suggestions and recommendations as to the hiring, firing, advancement, promotion or any other change of status of other employees must be given particular weight. To qualify for the administrative employee exemption, all of the following tests must be met:

Can a salary exempt employee work every week?

But there must be some part of the employee’s salary that is guaranteed every week in which they work at all. However, if the employee is paid by the hour, and earns a different amount of money depending on how many hours they work, they are probably not exempt.

Who are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act?

The Fair Labor Standards Act, as well as all states, exempt certain employees from their overtime requirements. The three most common exemptions include administrative employees, executive employees, and professional employees.

When do you have to pay overtime to a non exempt employee?

Under federal law, overtime is due whenever a non-exempt employee works more than 40 hours in a workweek. A few states also require overtime when employees work more than a certain number of hours in a workday, among other situations.

Can a non exempt employee be treated as an exempt employee?

Employers should always be careful to not mistakenly treat exempt employees as non-exempt employees as the Department of Labor often investigates claims of this nature. If it finds that an employer has misclassified an employee as exempt simply to avoid paying overtime, it may look into all of the employer’s classifications.

What are the rules for working over 40 hours a week?

Rule that employees not work over 40 hours. Discipline employees for breaking the rule to not work 40 hours. Ask employees to clock out and continue working. Pressure employees into an unspoken “don’t ask, don’t tell” situation where employees implicitly know they are expected to work more than 40 hours without overtime pay.

Can a non exempt employee work more than 40 hours a week?

Exempt employees can work as many hours are you want them to without increasing their pay. You must pay your Non-exempt employees for every hour they work. They also must receive overtime pay when they reach 40 hours a week (and in some states, if they work more than eight hours in one day). You cannot just say, “I want everyone to be on salary.”

How to manage the schedules of exempt employees?

That is better than simply focusing on the number of hours the exempt employees work or their starting time. For example, if an employee manages nonexempt employees who must be at work between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., you can require the exempt manager to be at work during the same hours to supervise properly.

What are the rules for overtime for nonexempt employees?

There is a lot of confusion and many misconceptions amongst both employers and employees when it comes to overtime rules. Overtime (according to federal and many states’ laws) is the time a nonexempt employee works over 40 hours in a single workweek. For every hour over 40, that employee must be compensated with 1.5 times his or her normal wage.

Can a manager be at work at the same time as an exempt employee?

When does an exempt manager have to be at work?

For example, if an employee manages nonexempt employees who must be at work between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., you can require the exempt manager to be at work during the same hours to supervise properly. Learn all you need to know about getting compensation right by properly classifying employees in this new PayScale whitepaper: Employee Classification

What is an exempt employee?

An exempt employee is an individual who is exempt from any overtime pay or minimum wage requirements.
This exemption is generally found in American labor laws and is called the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
FLSA regulations are accompanied by local and state regulations that complement these rules and create different guidelines for employees.