Massachusetts and Federal Overtime Laws
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Massachusetts Wage Act both presume that employees are entitled to overtime. Under both statutes, employees are entitled to time-and-a-half for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.
However, employees who are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Massachusetts Wage Act are not entitled to overtime. The burden is on the employer to prove that an exemption applies and that the employees are not entitled to time-and-a-half for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek.
I’m paid a salary, should I be paid overtime?
Just because you are paid a salary does not mean you aren’t entitled to overtime. Instead, to be exempt from overtime pay you have to be paid a certain salary, at least $684/week, and perform certain duties that are associated with managerial level employees. The most common duties that exempt employees from the right to overtime pay are those associated with the ‘white collar exemptions.’ These exemptions apply to both the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Massachusetts Wage Act.
salary test - flsa minimum salary Basis requirements for Overtime Pay
In order to be covered by any of overtime pay exemptions, and thus not entitled to overtime pay, the employee must pass the salary test, meaning he or she must be paid a salary of at least $684 per week. That amount must be predetermined and cannot be reduced because of variations in the quality or quantity of the employee’s work. If an employee does not satisfy the salary test, he or she must be paid overtime for all hours worked over 40 in a workweek, regardless of job title, amount of pay, or job duties.
executive exemption from overtime pay
Employees that pass the salary test must also pass the duties test in order to be disqualified from overtime protections. To satisfy the duties test for executive employees, (1) an employee’s primary duty must be managing the enterprise, or a customarily recognized department or subdivision of the enterprise; (2) the employee must customarily and regularly direct the work of at least two or more other full-time employees or their equivalent; and (3) 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 other change in status of other employees must be given significant weight. All three of these requirements and the salary test must be satisfied in order for an employee to be disqualified from overtime protection by operation of the executive employee exemption.
administrative exemption from overtime pay
To satisfy the duties test for administrative employees, (1) the employee’s primary duty must be the performance of office or non-manual work directly related to the management or general business operations of the employer or the employer’s customers; and (2) the employee’s primary duty includes the exercise of discretion and independent judgment with respect to matters of significance. Each of these requirements and the salary test must be satisfied in order for an employee to be disqualified from overtime protection by operation of the administrative employee exemption. Employees that may be subject to this test are high-ranking employees in tax, finance, accounting, budgeting, auditing, insurance, quality control, purchasing, procurement, advertising, marketing, research, safety and health, personnel management, human resources, employee benefits, labor relations, public relations, government relations, computer network administration, or legal and regulatory compliance.
learned professional exemption from overtime pay
To satisfy the duties test for learned professionals, (1) the employee’s primary duty must be the performance of work requiring advanced knowledge, defined as work which is predominantly intellectual in character and which includes work requiring the consistent exercise of discretion and judgment; (2) the advance knowledge must be in a field of science or learning; and (3) the advanced knowledge must be customarily acquired by a prolonged course of specialized intellectual instruction. All three of these requirements and the salary test must be satisfied in order for an employee to be disqualified from overtime protection by operation of the learned professional exemption. Employees that may be subject to this test are doctors, lawyers, engineers, registered or certified medical technologists, nurses, dental hygienists, physician assistants, accountants, chefs, paralegals, athletic trainers, and funeral directors.
creative professional exemption from overtime pay
To satisfy the duties test for creative professionals, the employee’s primary duty must be the performance of work requiring invention, imagination, originality, or talent in a recognized field of artistic or creative endeavor. Exemption as a creative professional depends on the extent of the invention, imagination, originality, or talent exercised by the employee. These requirements are generally met by actors, musicians, composers, soloists, painters, writers, cartoonists, and novelists.
Computer Professional Exemption from Overtime Pay
To satisfy the duties test for computer professionals an employer must establish that the employee was employed as a computer systems analyst, computer programmer, software engineer, or other similarly skilled worker in the computer field whose primary duty is to perform one or more of the following: the application of systems analysis techniques and procedures; the design, development, documentation, analysis, creation, testing or modification of computer systems or programs; the design, documentation, testing, creation or modification of computer programs related to machine operating systems; or a combination of the aforementioned duties, the performance of which requires the same level of skills.
Outside Sales Exemption from Overtime Pay
Generally speaking, there are two types of outside sales employees, ones who are exempt from overtime requirements and ones who are exempt from overtime and minimum wage requirements. The first exempts outside sales employees from minimum wage and overtime requirements and applies to employees who (1) regularly sell products away from the place of business and (2) refrain from making daily reports or visits to the office. The second exempts outside sales employees from just overtime requirements and applies to employees who (1) are employed to make sales or obtain orders for sales and (2) are customarily and regularly engaged away from the employer’s place of business.
I’m paid a salary and I think I should be paid overtime - next steps
Employers go to great lengths to avoid paying their employees overtime, including: (1) misclassifying an employee as exempt from coverage of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Massachusetts Wage Act; (2) calculating hours worked by pay period instead of workweek; (3) asking you to work before or after your shift; (4) asking you to work over your lunch break; (5) refusing to pay you overtime because you worked it without permission or authorization.
Overtime claims are complicated. If you are working more than 40 hours in a week and not being paid overtime, you may be entitled to significant monetary compensation. Steffans Legal focuses solely on Massachusetts employment law, including overtime claims. We can help.
