One of the more common ways that California employers attempt to avoid paying overtime is by way of the administrative exemption. Before you are a victim of wage theft by your employer by way of the improper use of the administrative exemption, please read the balance of this article which sets forth the critical factors utilized in determining whether you should be paid overtime compensation.
REQUIRED SALARY THRESHOLD
Preliminarily, it takes far more than a fancy job title or the fact that you agreed to be exempt for an employer to avoid paying overtime. As discussed in a previous article on this site, employees are presumed not to be exempt from overtime and courts are required to construe overtime exemptions narrowly. Before proceeding to the balance of the factors utilized in deciding whether or not an employee falls within the administrative exemption, the position must pass a minimum salary threshold. The employee must receive a salary equivalent to no less than two times the current minimum wage, presently $11.00 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees, as of January 1, 2018. If you are not earning $3,813.33 per month as a full time employee, you do not qualify as an exempt administrative employee even if your circumstances meet all of the criteria set forth below.
50% or more time spent on exempt duties
Assuming that your employer has met the minimum salary threshold, they must additionally prove that your specific job duties are considered to be administrative according to California law. The analysis involves a five-step process, each of which must be met, before the administrative exemption lawfully allows the employer to avoid paying overtime. An employer must establish that the employee spends more than 50% of their time performing the duties further discussed below. If not, the employee does not qualify for the exemption.
job duty analysis
Under wage order 1-2001, the court or labor commissioner must first look to whether or not the employee performs “office or non-manual work directly related to management policies or general business operations of the employer or the employer’s customers.” If not, then the exemption analysis concludes and the employee must be paid overtime.
Assuming the employer satisfies the first step in the analysis of the employee’s duties, it must also show that the duties regularly involve the exercise of discretion and independent judgment. As was the case with the first step, the employee must be paid overtime if they do not exercise independent discretion or judgment. If the first two hurdles are met, the job responsibilities, Per California Code of Regulations Title 8, Section 11010, must include at least one of the following:
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Regularly assisting the employer or its executive in an
Executive or administrative capacity; or
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Performs work, under general supervision, that
requires specialized work, knowledge or experience; or
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performs specialized tasks again only under general
supervision.
ask for help
Don’t be intimidated by the complexity of the overtime laws or your employer’s insistence that you are an exempt employee. There are many statute of limitations involved in wage and hour claims that do require immediate attention. Contact the Perrin Law Group today for your free consultation today and to get all of the compensation that you are owed.
