Salaried Employees

Just because you are paid a salary does not mean that you are not entitled to overtime pay. The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that 86% of the American workforce--about 115 million employees--is covered by federal overtime rules. This includes salaried employees and white-collar workers.

Many Texas employers--especially small businesses--wrongly believe that an employee is not entitled to overtime pay if the employee is paid a salary. Small businesses make up the largest number of employers. As a result, untold numbers of salaried employees should be paid overtime pay and are not.

Under federal overtime law and Texas overtime law, salaried employees must receive overtime pay for hours worked over 40 in any workweek unless two specific requirements are met: (1) the salary exceeds $455 per workweek; and (2) the employee performs duties satisfying one of the narrowly-defined FLSA overtime exemptions (e.g. executive, administrative, professional, etc).

Even when it appears that these strict requirements are met, technical legal reasons may prevent an employer from denying overtime pay to a salaried employee. This is because employers must dot every "i" and cross every "t" or risk owing thousands of dollars in overtime pay.

Dallas, Texas overtime lawyer Barry Hersh dedicates a significant part of his overtime law practice to representing salaried employees in overtime pay lawsuits and is available to pursue unpaid overtime claims for employees all over Texas, including Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, El Paso, and San Antonio. To submit your claim for a free evaluation, contact us here.