What Should I Do If My Employer is Not Paying Me Overtime?

As a qualifying employee in Florida, you have a right to overtime compensation. In this article, we’ll discuss the steps that you can take to recover the money you deserve for working overtime.

Florida’s Overtime Laws

Florida’s law doesn’t include any overtime laws of its own. So, the Florida legislature previously determined that federal overtime laws would apply throughout the state.

For Florida employees, any hours that exceed 40 hours in a seven-day period are considered overtime. This is outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act, or FLSA, a federal standard that’s followed in Florida. The FLSA also requires employers to pay employees (that aren’t considered exempt) at least 1.5 times their base pay for any hours that exceed the 40-hour workweek.

Certain employees are exempt from overtime protection under the FLSA. These include salaried employees who perform professional, executive, or administrative job duties. Exempt employees must also earn at least $684 per week as of 2023.

Note that employees whose job duties mainly involve law, teaching, or medicine may be classified as exempt even if their salary is below $684 per week. The FLSA includes this as a limited exemption.

What To Do If You’re Not Paid For Overtime

If you’ve worked beyond the 40-hour limit in Florida, your employer fails to provide overtime pay, and you’re considered non-exempt under the FLSA, you have the right to seek legal action. There are two ways to do so.

Firstly, you may file a complaint with the Florida Department of Labor or the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, or WHD. Both of these departments can legally investigate your claim and demand that your employer pay your rightful compensation.

By filing a complaint with a government agency, you’ll have to wait for an investigator to take action. A more immediate, personalized approach is to speak with an attorney. An experienced overtime attorney can build and file a lawsuit against your employer.

At Weldon & Rothman, PL, our attorneys are experienced in recovering overtime compensation for current and former employees who haven’t been fairly paid. We offer free consultations, and you won’t have to pay attorneys’ fees unless we recover your compensation.