Milwaukee Employment Law Attorneys

Overtime and Wage Lawyers

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) obligates employers to pay employees for the time working. This includes a minimum wage for all hours worked, and overtime compensation at one and one-half times the regular rate of pay for hours over 40 in any one week. Under the Wisconsin wage law, Chapter 109 Wis. Stats., employees are also able to recover unpaid straight time wages as well as overtime. Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C. has successfully pursued actions in both the state and federal courts on behalf of workers whose employers failed to pay them wages.

A. Misclassification of Employees

There a number of job classifications which are exempt from coverage under both the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the FLSA. For example, clerical, executive and professional employees are exempted from all coverage under the FLSA. The overtime provisions of the Act also exempt certain employees covered by the Secretary of Transportation safety regulations, employees of rail and air carriers, drivers and helpers making local deliveries, agricultural employees, in addition to other job classifications.

Misclassifying employees is one way in which employers violate the FLSA. Violations of the Act include misclassifying employees as executive or administrative employees in order to avoid paying minimum wage and overtime obligations. In other cases, employees are improperly classified as "independent contractors" to avoid paying overtime. In case where employees have been misclassified as exempt from the FLSA, employees are entitled to recover the wages and overtime they would have received. Employees can claim wages going back two years, or three years if the violation is willful.

If you have questions about whether you have been properly classified as exempt from the wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the lawyers at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C. are ready to assist you. Please contact the overtime and wage attorneys at 1-800‑841‑5232 or at wages@Previant.com.

B. Failure to Correctly Compensate Employees

Employers avoid paying employees wages and overtime by claiming that employees are not entitled to wages for working time. Failure to compensate employees for "work" time is one of the most basic violations of state and federal wage laws. Examples of such problems include:

• Having employees work "off the clock."
• Not paying employees for donning and doffing sanitary work uniforms.
• Failing to pay employees due to inaccurate records of hours worked.
• Paying employees for scheduled work, rather than work performed.
• Rounding or editing time records.
• Permitting employees to "volunteer" to work without pay.
• Improper payment of wages for tipped employees

Other examples include failure to pay employees overtime for attending training and meetings or breaks. Under Wisconsin law, employees are entitled to be paid for breaks of less than 20 minutes or where they are not entitled to leave the employer's premises.

Failure to pay employees for all time worked may result in an underpayment of wages resulting in a claim for unpaid overtime and straight time wages. Failure to compensate employees for time worked frequently violates both the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and the Wisconsin Wage Law, Chapter 109 Wis. Stats. Employees are entitled to recover the wages and overtime they would have received for all work time. Under both Federal and Wisconsin Law, Employees can claim back wages for two years. Under the FLSA, employees may be able to claim wages going back three years if the violation is willful.

If you believe that your employer is failing to pay your wages correctly, the lawyers at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C. are ready to assist you. Please contact the overtime and wage attorneys at 1-800‑841‑5232 or at wages@Previant.com.

C. Failure to Correctly Calculate Overtime

Overtime wages must be at time and one-half of the "regular rate of pay." Regular rate of pay may include shift bonuses, pension contributions, or other pay incentives. Failure to calculate overtime on all elements of the regular rate of pay may also violate the Act.

If you believe that your employer is failing to calculate your regular rate of pay correctly, the lawyers at Previant, Goldberg, Uelmen, Gratz, Miller & Brueggeman, S.C. are ready to assist you. Please contact the overtime and wage attorneys at 1-800‑841‑5232 or at wages@Previant.com.