Thomas & Solomon LLP with offices located in Rochester and Buffalo represents clients in all aspects of the employment relationship, including employment discrimination, sexual harassment, breach of contract, unpaid wages including overtime and employee benefits. Every year the settlements and judgments we obtain for our clients total in the multimillions of dollars. In addition to individual cases, the firm’s attorneys have litigated scores of class action multi-plaintiff suits since the firm was founded in 2000.
Wage and Hour Law / Unpaid Overtime
The firm represents many employees in cases involving wages and hours, including cases that fall within the ambit of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law. Wage and hour cases include situations where employees are not paid overtime, not paid for all hours worked or are misclassified as an exempt employee (and therefore not paid overtime).
Below are some specific examples of situations that may violate federal and state overtime laws.
- An employer requires employees to record their scheduled hours on their time sheets instead of the actual hours worked. The employee may be forced to record 9am to 5pm Monday through Friday on his or her timecard eventhough the employee arrived at work and began performing work at 8:52am and did not leave until 5:05pm. We believe that in many cases the employee should be compensated for the unrecorded time as overtime pay.
- An employee receives a 30 minute unpaid lunch each day but his or her lunch is often interrupted or he or she does not receive the whole 30 minutes. We believe that in many cases, once an employee’s lunch is interrupted, he or she is entitled to compensation for the whole 30 minutes which often results in overtime.
- An employee’s working time is not recorded until they pick up the telephone to start answering phone calls even though they arrived at work 15 minutes earlier to read work e-mails and to prepare for the days tasks. While this time may seem minimal, it can add up to over one hour of overtime each week.
- An employee is classified as exempt from overtime laws under the executive exemption but the employee does not supervise two or more employees. In misclassification cases, we often argue that plantiff is owed overtime pay for all hours worked over 40 hours in a work week.
- An employee is classified as exempt from overtime laws under the administrative exemption but the employee does not exercise independent judgment and discretion with respect to matters of significance. In misclassification cases, we often argue that plantiff is owed overtime pay for all hours worked over 40 hours in a work week.
- An employee receives bonuses based on production or sales but does not receive overtime payments on those bonuses.
There are many other violations that employers participate in to avoid paying their employees statutorily required overtime. Please feel free to contact us if you would like us to evaluate whether you are being paid correctly under federal and New York state overtime laws.
Our Approach to Recover Unpaid Wages Including Unpaid Overtime
Taking legal action should be the last recourse taken to address injustice in the workplace. The process takes enormous time, energy and expense and can create stress on the client. That’s why we carefully consider every course of action – whether to take a case, reach an out-of-court settlement, or go to trial – based on what is best for the client.
Screening for Potential Unpaid Wage and Unpaid Overtime Claims
We have a telephone screening system for unpaid wage and unpaid overtime claims once you contact us. During the screening you will be able to speak with an attorney over the phone regarding your potential unpaid wage and unpaid overtime claims free of charge. After you have spoken with an attorney over the phone, you will have the opportunity to come in for an in person case evaluation if you still wish to discuss your employment situation in person. A fee is required for in person meetings. Our intake paralegal will discuss fee amounts with you before a case evaluation is scheduled in one of our offices.
At the in person case evaluation, we ask questions to determine your goals, your needs and the merits of your case. Doing an evaluation does not guarantee that we will take the case, or that we will decide to litigate. No matter what the course of action, the consultation provides you with expert advice on your next steps.
You will know whether you have a case, whether its worth spending time and money pursuing what your rights are and what your employer’s rights are.