I took a part-time job at a university where the job posting and my offer letter clearly stated I would work 20 hours per week at a rate of $50/hour, starting on 8/19. The problem is, the actual work didn’t start until this month. When we finally received the employee handbook (a month after hire), it said compensation would actually be $25 per application processed, with an estimate that each application would take about half an hour. In reality, they take closer to 1.5 hours each. I asked my supervisor if we should submit hours based on the number of applications processed or on the actual hours worked since we’re still in training. She said to submit for hours worked because they acknowledged the apps take longer while training. So I submitted my first timesheet for 9 hours of work over two weeks, which included reading training materials, watching videos, and asking questions to ensure I was doing the job correctly. They contested the hours but eventually approved it. The following week, I worked 6 hours but only submitted 4 to avoid issues. However, management refused to approve any of those hours and said they wanted to start with a ‘clean slate.’ So now I’ve essentially worked for free last week. I’m planning to leave the job due to their dishonesty, but do I have any legal recourse to be compensated for those hours?
Since it’s a university, they should have a trained HR person. You might want to try contacting your manager first to clarify the situation, and if that doesn’t help, reach out to HR. It sounds like they’re trying something new and haven’t figured it out yet. Make sure to submit all the hours you’ve worked—they need to know how long these tasks are actually taking you!
@Remy
Thank you for the advice. I’ll definitely reach out to HR if my manager doesn’t resolve it. I’ve been diligent in tracking my time, so I hope they take this seriously.
Remy said:
@Remy
Thank you for the advice. I’ll definitely reach out to HR if my manager doesn’t resolve it. I’ve been diligent in tracking my time, so I hope they take this seriously.
That’s a good approach. HR is there to help with these issues, and you have every right to be paid for the time you’ve worked. It’s important they see how long the tasks are really taking, especially during training.
If you still made at least minimum wage for the hours you worked, there’s no violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Based on PA law, the situation would be similar unless they failed to pay you at least minimum wage or overtime. Here’s a helpful resource: Wage FAQs | Department of Labor and Industry | Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
@smart1
I didn’t get paid at all for those hours. Thanks for the resource! I’ll check it out to see if it helps clarify my next steps.
Remy said:
@smart1
I didn’t get paid at all for those hours. Thanks for the resource! I’ll check it out to see if it helps clarify my next steps.
If you weren’t paid at all, that could definitely be a minimum wage violation. I’d suggest filing a complaint with the state or federal department of labor to get things resolved.
All hours worked must be paid, so you should definitely contact your state department of labor. It’s illegal for them to refuse to pay you for the hours you worked, regardless of how many applications you processed.
@Levi
Just to clarify, under the FLSA, you’re required to be paid at least minimum wage for all hours worked. If there’s a violation of minimum wage or overtime, you have grounds to file a complaint. Here’s a detailed source: https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/2018_12_21_28_FLSA.pdf
Your employer is required to pay you for all hours worked, and refusing to do so is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). If they continue to deny your hours, you should definitely contact the Department of Labor to file a complaint. They need to address this.
@Hollis
That’s what I was thinking. I’ve been documenting everything, so I’ll reach out to the DOL if my supervisor doesn’t resolve this soon.
Remy said:
@Hollis
That’s what I was thinking. I’ve been documenting everything, so I’ll reach out to the DOL if my supervisor doesn’t resolve this soon.
It’s great that you’ve been documenting everything. That will help your case a lot if you need to take this further. Good luck, and I hope it gets resolved quickly!
This situation is frustrating, and it sounds like the company is trying to take advantage of the fact that you’re in training to avoid paying you. As others have said, all working hours must be compensated. If they’re not paying you, it’s illegal. I’d recommend reaching out to the state labor department as well as HR.
@Jaden
Thanks for the advice! I’m definitely considering filing a complaint if this isn’t resolved soon.