As the baby-boom generation ages and we all become anxious about the Social Security system, employer-sponsored pensions and retirement savings plans become more important. Complicated federal and state laws regulate these vehicles. Contact a knowledgeable pension and benefits attorney for answers to your questions about pensions and other retirement benefits.
Los Angeles Wage and Benefits Attorneys
Helping Southern California Businesses and Residents Understand Employment Law
The attorneys of the Bononi Law Group, LLP, represent employer and employee clients in the greater Los Angeles area in wage and benefits disputes. As you consider or manage the legalities of your legal challenge, you may find the wage and benefits legal details provide below to be helpful.
We have handled hundreds of wage and benefits disputes in our 20-plus years of employment law experience. For further information about wage and benefits law, visit our wage claim page or contact our firm at 1-800-641-5548.
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At the Bononi Law Group, LLP, we combine decades of casework experience with an unmatched reputation in employment law throughout southern California. Our team includes multiple members who are listed as California Super Lawyers and an attorney who has been selected as one of The Best Lawyers in America each year for more than 20 years. For effective legal help, call 1-800-641-5548.
When you enter negotiations or the courtroom you want an experienced litigator at your side. The attorneys of the Bononi Law Group, LLP, are in court weekly and have successfully resolved hundreds of wage, discrimination and FMLA disputes. For effective dispute-resolution legal help, call 1-800-641-5548.
Wages and Overtime
We go to work every day to earn money to support ourselves and our families. Monetary compensation influences heavily which jobs we pick, whether we work or retire, and where we live. Federal and state governments have enacted many laws to protect your interest in receiving fair pay for your hard work. An experienced employment law attorney, such as one from Bononi Law Group, LLP in Los Angeles, California, can help you take advantage of the protections offered by those laws.
Minimum-Wage Requirements
The federal minimum wage has been set at $7.25 per hour since July 2009. Previously, despite rising prices, for 10 years federal law required that most employees received a minimum wage of $5.15 per hour. The federal minimum wage was finally raised by the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 to $5.85 per hour on July 24, 2007. The Act provided for additional 70-cent increases on the same date each in 2008 and 2009. Despite President Obama's campaign promises to raise it again, federal minimum wage remains at $7.25.
Some states have set the minimum wage at a higher level. If a state has set a higher minimum than the federal standard, the higher state minimum wage applies. The state minimum wage would also apply to most workers not covered by the federal standard.
Federal law and some state laws allow employers to pay a lower minimum wage, sometimes called a training wage, to certain teenage employees under 20 years of age. Under federal law, this lower wage may be paid only for the first 90 days of employment and an employer may not terminate or displace a worker who is paid more in order to be able to pay the lower wage to a new hire. Federal law also establishes a special minimum wage formula for employees who earn regular tips and for certain workers with disabilities.
Overtime
Generally, federal law requires that most employees receive overtime pay for any time worked over 40 hours in any workweek. The rate of overtime pay is one-and-one-half times the employee's regular rate of pay. Employees who are eligible may not waive their right to overtime pay.
Exempt Employees
The main federal law establishing wage and overtime standards is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA). Employees protected by the FSLA are referred to as nonexempt employees; employees falling outside the scope of the Act are called exempt employees. Exempt employees do not benefit from the FLSA minimum wage and overtime requirements.
Exempt employees include certain types of white-collar employees, such as administrative, professional, executive and outside sales. Other types of exempt employees include some computer personnel, certain highly compensated individuals, some agricultural workers, apprentices, babysitters, some workers with disabilities and particular other types of employees. Your employer should act carefully when deciding whether you or one of your colleagues falls into an exempt category because the FSLA is supposed to cast a wide net and is subject to broad, not narrow, interpretation.
Conclusion
All employers and employees should be aware of wage and overtime laws. These laws and the regulations that interpret them can be difficult to understand and apply to your situation. A knowledgeable employment law attorney from Bononi Law Group, LLP in Los Angeles, California, can give you all the information you need about these laws and regulations.
