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Post by cade387 on Jun 3, 2016 21:47:39 GMT
One thing to realize though is that ANY employee can be classified as NONexempt and be paid hourly plus Overtime. That is totally legal. No matter what the hourly rate or # of hours per week.
So when you say you lost your ability to be salary plus OT, what happened was that the exemption definitions were broadened and your employer decided to classify you as exempt. No law forced them to do so. They did take advantage of the broadening of the definition of exempt. But at the same time the minimum weekly wage for exempts went up a lot (Not sure how it ever got left at $155 per week before than when that was less than minimum wage) so a different group of employees benefited at that point. If you don't make the new minimum, then you will benefit by the employers being forced to move you back to nonexempt due to the wage basis.
I know some employer's pay at the bottom level of the wage basis (current $455 a week that goes up on December 1st) but I have to agree with keithurbanlovingpea(?) that many salaried people already made more than the current $455 a week. When we are looking at what to do with the 1 employee who falls less than the December 1st weekly amount, we aren't going to figure her rate at 40 hours per week. And honestly she gets a lot of paid timeoff here and there in small increments that she doesn't currently have to justify but after December 1st she won't get paid for since we now have to pay her hourly. Can't afford to give her a 6% pay increase.
I don't see how what I said was wrong???
The law changed and it gave my employer the ability to not pay me OT. So yes, I lost out on OT, because according to my employer I was no longer eligible for it. When you are working 12 hours for 5 days a week and then 8hrs on Saturday and Sunday and then they say too bad you aren't making 1.5 or 2x for those extra hours anymore and they are mandatory or you get fired - it sucks.
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Post by *KAS* on Jun 3, 2016 22:12:01 GMT
The other issue with being salaried is if you have to do a lot a travel for work. I didn't mind traveling for work, but I did mind having to travel on weekends and not being able to take a comp day off during the week to make up for it, ever. Yes, traveling for work definitely makes for bigger challenges for salaried employees from that perspective. We don't have a formal 'comp time' policy either. Thankfully, my boss is VERY flexible. When I am at home, I usually don't get to work until 9:30 - but nobody cares since I'm often still there at 8pm. (and no, going in earlier doesn't mean I will leave earlier. I just work even MORE hours!) But I also schedule all doctor, dentist, and hair appointments in the middle of week days, and don't feel the slightest amount of guilt. Even my client joked a few weeks ago that I just need to tell him when my hair appointments are so he can put them on his calendar and stop scheduling meetings for me. But they are that way b/c I also work about 30 weekends a year, and average about 60 hours/week, and have been doing it for 15 years. So I've 'earned' the flexibility. I became a manager of a team of people a few years ago. It's important to me to retain good employees, so I do what I can to help. I don't control their salaries, but between my boss and I we've (I think) created a culture where they feel valued, we're pretty flexible, and we've recently implemented a 1 day/week 'work from home' policy after a few of them mentioned they wished we had that when I did their reviews. Other bosses in other offices are far more rigid, and it sucks for their team (one is my best friend. She travels Thurs-Monday, 30+ weekends a year, but if she tries to not come in one day the first words her boss says is "put your PTO in the system." Really? She's been on the road the last 12 of 15 days. Relax!) But yeah, salaries for those that travel can be a blessing and a curse.
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Post by anniefb on Jun 3, 2016 22:48:28 GMT
I'm a lawyer so have always been salaried. I have work as long as is needed to get the job done. Thankfully not always crazy hours, but I did a number of years in big firms where we worked 14 hr days plus at least 1 day in the weekend to keep up with the work.
People paid hourly wages tend to fall into certain industries here - construction, hospitality, cleaning, medical - nurses, caregivers etc and retail.
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katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,448
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jun 4, 2016 0:14:19 GMT
My brother is a project manager and is salaried. He supervises people that make more than he does because they get overtime and he does not. He has asked to take a step back down to his former, hourly job, but his bosses said no. Sucks for him.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Oct 8, 2024 4:37:55 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 4, 2016 1:05:21 GMT
A lot depends on the company you work for, the management you work for, as well as the work you do. I am salaried/exempt because that's what my position calls for in my company. Do I sometimes work long days? Yep, sometimes for more than a few days at a time. The flip side is that my schedule is very flexible. I have a management team that actually believes and supports "work life balance." Being willing to work what might be extraordinary hours as needed means I don't have to nickel-and-dime my PTO to death keeping track of every time I go to the dentist, meet a friend for lunch or (before this week) deal with things at school for/with my son. During certain events, once things are put to bed, I might be told to take a day without using PTO.
I know this isn't always the case and its often abused in some companies and by some management teams. It can be beneficial for all when done right.
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Post by katlady on Jun 4, 2016 3:42:22 GMT
The company I work for has both salaried and hourly employees. The hourly employees are a mix of union and non-union.
For me, the biggest pro of being a salaried employee is the flexibility. Yes, I sometimes have to work long hours, but I can also do short days if I need to for personal appointments and stuff, without losing pay or having to use vacation time. As long as the work gets done, that is what they always tell us.
The con is that yes, when I work long hours I do not get any $$ compensation. And my friend who is hourly, she can say no to meetings if it means it will put her past 8 hours for the day.
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Post by mymindseyedpea on Jun 4, 2016 3:52:16 GMT
My brother is a project manager and is salaried. He supervises people that make more than he does because they get overtime and he does not. He has asked to take a step back down to his former, hourly job, but his bosses said no. Sucks for him. Sounds very much like boyfriend's situation.
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Post by cmpeter on Jun 4, 2016 4:15:16 GMT
I agree that it also depends on your company and boss. When I travel for work I am almost always able to schedule the travel so it occurs during a close to normal work day. Coming home from NYC, I often don't get back until midnight and no one would blink if I didn't come in at 7:00 the next morning. If I had to fly and work over the weekend, I could take a comp day.
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