California Overtime Pay For Computer and IT Workers- Playing Hard to Get
If you are an IT or computer worker in California, getting your overtime pay has become harder and harder, yet not impossible, if you know the rules of the game.
As of 2013, if you are a computer programmer or computer designer, and if you make more than $83,000 per year, you may not be entitled to overtime pay in California.
In addition to the restriction above, computer software companies are becoming more and more savvy by creating hundreds and hundreds of job titles in order to make a possible class action seem very small when it comes to numerosity. In addition, job descriptions in many cases are not reflective of what the actual worker does, and therefore causes additional problems in litigating for overtime pay.
What are the solutions and how can a worker navigate these issues?
The first solution is to obtain an experienced California labor law attorney. A strong labor attorney can foresee and navigate through many of these pitfalls. Moreover, it should be understood that many other non programming type positions such as installers, help desk, and technicians are likely non exempt and entitled to overtime pay, and the $83,000 salary does not exempt such workers. Furthermore, when it comes to job descriptions that do not match duties, in most cases, the labor lawyer can access the performance evaluations which indicate what the worker actually did, versus what the job description states they were “supposed to be doing.” This is important in determining whether an employee is exempt or not and therefore entitled California overtime pay or not.
Many computer companies such as IBM, Sun Microsystems, Cisco and Intel, among others, have successfully been sued by California labor attorneys, netting millions of dollars for workers who were misclassified as not entitled to overtime pay.
It is not uncommon for employees in California who are recently laid off to complain of wrongful termination or discrimination, only to find out that their real claim is improper classification and they are in fact entitled to back overtime pay for up to four years pursuant to California labor law. Also, in investigating such violations it is important to also look at past employers, since again, the statute for recovery of overtime pay is up to four years previous to the date the lawsuit is filed.
If you have been working more than 8 hours in a day or more than 40 hours in a week and feel that you may be misclassified as “exempt” and not entitled to overtime pay, it is critical that you talk to a California labor law attorney to review your possible claims.
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