TAMPA, Fla. — Toria’s Support Care Services, a home care provide based in Tampa, has violated the minimum wage, overtime and record-keeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), according to investigators from the Tampa District Office of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.
Toria’s Support Care Services misclassified one maintenance worker and one care provider as independent contractors instead of employees and failed to pay them the federal minimum wage and overtime, according to the federal department. DOL also indicated the offending employer improperly paid other employees flat salaries without regard to how many hours they worked. These salaries, in some instances, failed to cover the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, and when employees worked more than 40 hours in a week the employer failed to pay them overtime as required by FLSA.
Requirements for Exemptions
DOL stated that simply paying an employee a salary does not necessarily mean the employee is not entitled to receive minimum wage and overtime under FLSA. There are specific requirements for exemptions for salaried employees. In addition to compensation on a salary basis at a rate not less than $455 per week, the exemption requirements include the following.
For the executive exemption:
- The employee’s primary duties are managing the business of the company, or managing a normally-recognized department or subdivision of the company;
- The employee customarily and regularly direct the work of at least two or more other full-time employees or their equivalent; and
- The employee has the authority to hire or fire other employees, or their suggestions and recommendations as to the hiring, firing, advancement, promotion, or any other change of status of other employees must be given particular weight.
As to the administrative exemption:
- The employee’s primary duties are performing office or non-manual work directly related to the management or general business operations of the employer or the employer’s customers; and
- The employee’s primary duty includes the exercise of discretion and independent judgment as to matters of significance.
There are also exemptions available for learned professionals, creative professionals, computer employees, and outside sales employees.
Exemption for White Collar Workers Only
DOL states that the exemptions provided by FLSA apply only to white collar employees who meet the salary and duties tests under the law. The exemptions do not apply to manual laborers or other blue collar workers who perform work involving repetitive operations with their hands, physical skill, and energy. FLSA-covered, non-management employees in production, maintenance, construction and similar occupations such as carpenters, electricians, mechanics, plumbers, iron workers, craftsmen, operating engineers, longshoremen, construction workers, and laborers are entitled to minimum wage and overtime premium pay under the FLSA and are not exempt no matter how highly paid they might be.
If you or someone you know is misclassified as exempt and therefore not paid overtime as required by FLSA, you should call (855) 754-2795 or complete the Free Unpaid Overtime Case Review form on the top right of this page. Our top-rated team of wage lawyers will evaluate your situation to determine your best course of action. We will also determine if it is in your best interest to file a lawsuit against your employer. There are strict time limitations for filing, so it is important that you call our experienced attorneys today.